Harris charts her own course — yet remains aligned with Biden's direction
During the recent debate, she stated, “Clearly, I am not Joe Biden.”
TroibNews 
Kamala Harris accompanied Joe Biden at a series of solemn ceremonies commemorating 9/11—just hours after a debate in which she barely mentioned his name. Later this week, she will join him again for an awards dinner in Washington before returning to the campaign trail.
This scenario reflects the complex balancing act Harris will need to navigate in the final two months of the campaign, a dynamic she made clear during the debate. “Clearly, I am not Joe Biden,” she remarked in response to Donald Trump’s assertion that “she is Biden.”
As a vice president running for president, Harris is closely tied to the current administration, a role she often embraces. However, as she positions herself as a catalyst for change, she must maintain some distance, particularly in light of Republican criticisms of Biden’s record and his approval rating, which remains below 50 percent despite some recent improvement.
Yet, she may also require Biden's support, particularly among older white voters in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and other crucial states where he has a unique appeal, vital for securing the necessary 270 electoral votes.
This was particularly apparent during the debate, where she framed herself as part of a “new generation of leadership,” contrasting sharply with Biden. Remarkably, she didn’t need to say much to make Biden feel secondary to her candidacy when it suited her.
Amanda Litman, a Democratic strategist and founder of Run For Something, noted that Harris’ focus on her own progressive agenda rather than revisiting the shared record with Biden helped her position herself independently. “She also stylistically can really distance herself,” Litman pointed out, citing her approach to topics like abortion and her disinterest in engaging with Trump’s provocations.
In response to the first question of the debate about whether Americans are better off than four years ago, Harris refrained from defending “Bidenomics” or citing statistics about low unemployment. Instead, she outlined aspects of her own economic plan, including increasing housing availability, expanding the child tax credit, and facilitating small business creation.
When Trump criticized Biden regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and questioned his presidential capabilities, Harris chose not to engage substantively. “They threw him out of a campaign like a dog,” Trump said, adding, “We don’t even know, is he our president? But we have a president ... that doesn’t know he’s alive.”
Harris replied coolly, “It’s important to remind the former president you’re not running against Joe Biden. You’re running against me.” This retort and her initial discussion of her economic agenda signaled a strategic decision to distinguish herself from Biden’s identity. Each time Trump painted Biden as frail or senile, she deliberately ignored those comments.
Her debate approach stood in contrast to just over two months prior when Harris defensively supported Biden after a debate performance that contributed to his exit from the race. Immediately after that first debate, she urged the audience to evaluate Biden's overall presidential performance rather than his debate performance alone.
Trump, who has frequently complained about Democrats switching candidates, found it challenging to maintain a consistent line of attack against Harris but still offered her some advantage during their debate. Instead of linking his criticisms directly to Harris and Biden, he made sporadic references to Biden, mocking him for spending time at the beach or jokingly suggesting Harris would need to wake him up in the afternoon. Only after a commercial break did he attempt to link them more directly.
“She is Biden. She is trying to get away from Biden,” Trump claimed amid an attack on their economic record, humorously imitating her supposed efforts to distance herself. “‘I don’t know the gentleman,’ she says,” he asserted.
David Axelrod, a former senior adviser to President Obama, commented, “A rational strategy for Trump would have been to tightly and relentlessly tie the vice president to the president on the economy, the border, and other issues on which he doesn’t rate highly. His mission was to make her the incumbent and himself the agent of change. But rational and Trump are often not words that go easily together.”
Trump's advisers had indicated prior to the debate that he would hold Harris accountable for the current administration’s record, as she has "been vice president for three and a half years." Despite receiving guidance to avoid her provocations, Trump struggled to execute that approach during the debate.
Following the event, Biden shared a post on X praising Harris and asserting that she outwitted Trump. “Wasn’t even close,” Biden wrote, echoing her closing remarks to the former president while emphasizing her suitability to lead the country forward: “We’re not going back.”
Meridith McGraw and Jonathan Lemire contributed to this report.
James del Carmen contributed to this report for TROIB News
This scenario reflects the complex balancing act Harris will need to navigate in the final two months of the campaign, a dynamic she made clear during the debate. “Clearly, I am not Joe Biden,” she remarked in response to Donald Trump’s assertion that “she is Biden.”
As a vice president running for president, Harris is closely tied to the current administration, a role she often embraces. However, as she positions herself as a catalyst for change, she must maintain some distance, particularly in light of Republican criticisms of Biden’s record and his approval rating, which remains below 50 percent despite some recent improvement.
Yet, she may also require Biden's support, particularly among older white voters in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and other crucial states where he has a unique appeal, vital for securing the necessary 270 electoral votes.
This was particularly apparent during the debate, where she framed herself as part of a “new generation of leadership,” contrasting sharply with Biden. Remarkably, she didn’t need to say much to make Biden feel secondary to her candidacy when it suited her.
Amanda Litman, a Democratic strategist and founder of Run For Something, noted that Harris’ focus on her own progressive agenda rather than revisiting the shared record with Biden helped her position herself independently. “She also stylistically can really distance herself,” Litman pointed out, citing her approach to topics like abortion and her disinterest in engaging with Trump’s provocations.
In response to the first question of the debate about whether Americans are better off than four years ago, Harris refrained from defending “Bidenomics” or citing statistics about low unemployment. Instead, she outlined aspects of her own economic plan, including increasing housing availability, expanding the child tax credit, and facilitating small business creation.
When Trump criticized Biden regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and questioned his presidential capabilities, Harris chose not to engage substantively. “They threw him out of a campaign like a dog,” Trump said, adding, “We don’t even know, is he our president? But we have a president ... that doesn’t know he’s alive.”
Harris replied coolly, “It’s important to remind the former president you’re not running against Joe Biden. You’re running against me.” This retort and her initial discussion of her economic agenda signaled a strategic decision to distinguish herself from Biden’s identity. Each time Trump painted Biden as frail or senile, she deliberately ignored those comments.
Her debate approach stood in contrast to just over two months prior when Harris defensively supported Biden after a debate performance that contributed to his exit from the race. Immediately after that first debate, she urged the audience to evaluate Biden's overall presidential performance rather than his debate performance alone.
Trump, who has frequently complained about Democrats switching candidates, found it challenging to maintain a consistent line of attack against Harris but still offered her some advantage during their debate. Instead of linking his criticisms directly to Harris and Biden, he made sporadic references to Biden, mocking him for spending time at the beach or jokingly suggesting Harris would need to wake him up in the afternoon. Only after a commercial break did he attempt to link them more directly.
“She is Biden. She is trying to get away from Biden,” Trump claimed amid an attack on their economic record, humorously imitating her supposed efforts to distance herself. “‘I don’t know the gentleman,’ she says,” he asserted.
David Axelrod, a former senior adviser to President Obama, commented, “A rational strategy for Trump would have been to tightly and relentlessly tie the vice president to the president on the economy, the border, and other issues on which he doesn’t rate highly. His mission was to make her the incumbent and himself the agent of change. But rational and Trump are often not words that go easily together.”
Trump's advisers had indicated prior to the debate that he would hold Harris accountable for the current administration’s record, as she has "been vice president for three and a half years." Despite receiving guidance to avoid her provocations, Trump struggled to execute that approach during the debate.
Following the event, Biden shared a post on X praising Harris and asserting that she outwitted Trump. “Wasn’t even close,” Biden wrote, echoing her closing remarks to the former president while emphasizing her suitability to lead the country forward: “We’re not going back.”
Meridith McGraw and Jonathan Lemire contributed to this report.
James del Carmen contributed to this report for TROIB News
