Allies of former President Trump have urged him to focus on attacking former Vice President Kamala Harris’ policies rather than commenting on her personality or physical attributes when confronting her.
Earlier this year, some in the former president’s circle denounced Harris as a “DEI candidate,” a criticism that some in Trump’s circle worry could alienate moderates and independents.
“So I’m not going to focus on her rhetoric. I’m going to focus on her ability to get the job done,” Rep. Max Miller, a Republican from Ohio and a former senior aide to Trump’s 2020 campaign, told Fox News Digital.
“This woman is not ready to be commander in chief of the country. In my opinion, Republicans should focus on that as opposed to the way Democrats have, which is to denounce someone based on the color of their skin or their gender. This is all about merit. So I think DEI is the wrong trap to fall into.”
New poll reveals how Democrats think of Harris as president
Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are likely to face off in November. (Getty Images)
“I think Trump’s tone will be to point out that her policies are worse than Biden’s and that the job he gave her has been a failure… I don’t think he’s going to make personal attacks,” said Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.), who served in the Trump administration’s cabinet.
Trump, meanwhile, has signaled that border policy will be a key part of his criticism of Harris, discussing what he called “the border bloodbath of ousted Border Commissioner Kamala Harris” in a conference call with reporters.
Harris announced she would seek the presidency on Sunday night after President Biden revealed he was withdrawing from the 2024 presidential race.
In response, some on the right have accused her of being picked as Biden’s vice president solely for her principles of “diversity, equity and inclusion,” citing her low approval ratings and her pressure on Biden in 2020 to nominate a black woman as his running mate.
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., called Harris the “DEI vice president” in a post on X on Monday.
Biden withdraws from 2024 rematch with Trump, ends bid for second term in White House
Rep. Ryan Zinke said he expects Trump to stop making personal attacks. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
“Personal smears don’t work in a politically successful campaign,” another House Republican told Fox News Digital on Tuesday, “so let’s not do that.”
Rep. Greg Stube (R-Fla.), a Trump ally, told Fox News Digital, “I hope that the American people don’t vote based on their beliefs about race or color. I don’t think that’s the case anymore… She’s owned everything for the last three and a half years of the Biden-Harris administration. That’s all she needs to focus on.”
Caroline Leavitt, the Trump campaign’s 2024 campaign spokesperson, slammed Harris in a statement to Fox News Digital, saying Harris “needs to be held accountable for her abysmal weak record on crime in California.”
“Kamala Harris is just as weak, failed and incompetent as Joe Biden – and dangerously liberal. Not only will Kamala have to explain her support for Joe Biden’s failed policies for the last four years, she will also have to explain her abysmal weak record on crime in California,” Leavitt said. “A vote for Kamala is a vote for more crime, more inflation, open borders, higher gas prices and war around the world, and our team will make sure every American knows that.”
House Republican leaders, in a closed-door meeting on Tuesday morning, urged lawmakers to refrain from attacking Harris as a person or her physical characteristics, multiple Republicans told Fox News Digital.
The White House and family have given conflicting accounts of whether Biden’s health issues influenced his decision to drop out of the race.
But Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene pivoted to attack Harris. (Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Rep. Nick Langworthy of New York, who weathered a tough election as New York state Republican chairman and once tried to recruit Trump for governor, called the personal attacks “noise.” “It’s really important that we continue to have policy discussions. This is an economic election. This is about the economy and the anxiety that the middle class, particularly, is feeling right now,” he said.
Click here to get the FOX News app
But not all of Trump’s supporters agree. “I think everybody knows that,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia and one of Trump’s key campaign surrogates, told Fox News Digital the other day.
“She wasn’t chosen because she really had a high rating among Democrats across the country. She was chosen for a reason, and unfortunately it appears that her gender and the color of her skin were part of that reason,” Greene said, adding that she also expected the Trump campaign to attack Harris’ policies.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Harris’ campaign for comment.
