The BDN Opinion section operates independently and does not set news policies or contribute to reporting or editing articles elsewhere in the newspaper or on bangordailynews.com C’mon, Madame Vice President. If you believe the betting markets , the race for the White House is Kamala Harris’ to lose.
Her campaign is starting to play it safe. In a lot of ways, that makes sense. Run the clock out when you have a lead and don’t make mistakes.
But the presidency is not a football game. As I wrote after the first — and apparently only — debate between Harris and Donald Trump, Harris needs to step up and deal with the challenges that come with the office. In that setting, she ducked hard questions about the performance of the Biden Administration.
Now, she’s missing an opportunity to display magnanimity, humor, and grace as this nation’s would-be president. One of the more fun traditions in presidential campaigns is the Al Smith dinner . Hosted by the Archbishop of New York for the last 80 years, it has become a treasured ritual.
Opponents take to the podium and make fun of themselves, each other, and circumstances. It has offered some great scenes over the years. In 2008, John McCain — running against Barack Obama — noted that he believed some of the New York Democrats in the room were secretly pulling for him.
He went on to thank Hillary Clinton for being there. Vice President Harris has decided to skip the dinner this year. Since 1960, the only other major candi.
