There is a lot of finger pointing going on in the Democratic Party. But the lesson to be learned from this election is rather simple: when you know something is a problem, you must deal with it in an effective manner.
Problem #1: Trump and most people connected the Vice President with the actions/record of the unpopular Biden administration. It's hard to disassociate yourself with the actions of an administration you are part of, even if the Vice President has little power.
But, when Kamala Harris was asked during a televised interview what she would have done differently from Biden, she answered that she couldn't think of one thing that she would have done differently! This was a gift question, and she totally blew it. And of course the Trump campaign immediately used the footage of her own words to nail her as being no different from Biden.
She knew that this was a major issue for many voters, and yet she made no effort to distance herself from Biden, beyond saying that she was her own person and would have a different administration. This was taking loyalty to Biden beyond any reasonable expectation
Problem #2: People felt they would be better off financially under Trump; that he would be better on the economy. Harris tried with some success to counter this feeling by stressing her various plans to make life easier financially for middle-class workers.
But the main reason people felt the way they did was not because of an appreciation of policies. They knew prices were lower and things easier when Trump was president, and they knew prices and interest rates were higher when Biden was president. The old incumbency affect.
What the Vice President needed to do was say, yes, prices and interests rates were lower when Trump was president, but it had nothing to do with his policies; it's just the way the world was at that time, pre-pandemic. And yes, things are higher now, but again it has nothing to do with Biden's policies; it's a function of the post-pandemic world.
So past experience here has no relevance. She should have said that the only way to think about which candidate would be better for you financially is to look at each candidate's plans. She had definite plans to help. Trump had none, and the plans he did have for raising tariffs will definitely increase prices.
Problem #3: A large segment of White workers felt neglected by the Democratic Party for years and were angry. What Harris needed to do was a sincere mea culpa to these workers, preferably during a speech to the nation on Fox, buying the time. She certainly emphasized her understanding of the plight of workers and her plans to improve things, but she never apologized for the Party not focusing on their problems for decades.
There's no way of knowing whether these statements would have won Harris the election, but they sure would have helped draw more voters to her. For the record, I emailed the Vice President with these thoughts during the campaign.
