Former President Donald Trump and his Republican running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, have reportedly conducted more than 10 times as many interviews as his rival, Vice President Kamala Harris, and his running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.
Axios compiled a list of the number of interviews each side gave and found a stark contrast in their willingness to explain their policies and positions to the American public.
In fact, the Harris-Waltz campaign is on pace to hold fewer interviews and press conferences “than any major party presidential pairing in modern history,” Axios reports.
Axios reports that Harris has been purposely avoiding interviews because some of her “worst moments” as vice president have occurred during them.
Bottom line: Some of VP Harris' worst moments came when she made thoughtless or unclear comments about key policies during interviews.
Her campaign is trying to avoid such a moment happening again.
The Harris campaign is betting it can win by avoiding tough interviews, but the strategy is risky because polls show many voters are unfamiliar with either Harris or Waltz, the report said.
Harris has given just three interviews in the 59 days since she became the Democratic presidential nominee, compared to Trump's 14. Even Biden, during the 2020 campaign and at the height of the pandemic, gave more interviews than Harris during that same period, according to Axios.
Meanwhile, Walz has given just four interviews in the 44 days since becoming the vice presidential candidate, compared with 59 for Vance.
Meet the Press — Host Kristen Welker interviews Sen. J.D. Vance — Pictured: (from left) host Kristen Welker, Sen. J.D. Vance — (Photo by Meg Vogel/NBC)
Here's Axios' breakdown since July 21st:
Local TV interviews: Trump 7, Vance 15, Harris 1, Waltz 3
National print publications: Trump 1, Vance 8, Harris 1, Waltz 0
National TV interviews: Trump 2, Vance 24, Harris 1, Waltz 1
Press Conference: Trump, 3; Vance, 12; Harris, 0; Waltz, 0
The number did not include “partisan” or “conservative commentators,” which would have made Trump and Vance's numbers even higher, nor did it include Waltz's interview with MSNBC.
Axios reported that Waltz's avoidance of the media was an unconventional move, as he had previously fielded questions from local media “regularly” despite “a tendency to make occasional misstatements and exaggerations.”
For more than a decade since debuting as Harris' running mate, Waltz has come under fire for falsely claiming to be a retired Army command sergeant major when in fact he retired at a lower rank — sergeant major. He also claimed to have been “at war” when he never deployed to a combat zone. He also falsely claimed he chose to reenlist after 9/11 instead of retiring (even though he was ineligible to do so at the time).
Waltz also claims that he and his wife had two children through IVF, when in fact it was through intrauterine insemination, a less invasive method.
Currently, Waltz also avoids the media.
Axios reported, “The Minnesota Star Tribune reported that after traveling with Walz in early September, 'We were kept at least 10 feet apart when we got off the plane. A reporter twice yelled questions, but Walz ignored them.'”
RELATED — Clyburn: Further interviews with Harris could lead to “drilling” into questions until she makes damaging statements
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