Democratic strategist are now questioning the Harris version of the hiding in the basement strategy

Damned if she does and Damned if she doesn't. Apparently she has failed to capitalize on the excitement of her initial entrance into the race.

“Even as polling shows the presidential race is a toss-up, Vice President Kamala Harris has been running with a measure of risk aversion that some Democratic strategists and activists worry has failed to fully capitalize on the excitement surrounding her entry into the race in July,” NBC News reports.

“Until this point, Harris has largely eschewed freewheeling interactions with voters like town hall-style events or interviews with the media that could offer a sense of her authentic self and make people more comfortable with her abrupt emergence at the top of the ticket, these Democrats say.”

It wasn't but a few weeks ago that liberals and strategists were defending Harris against criticisms that she was not answering questions or engaging enough with the media. In fact, a few weeks ago it was considered a wonderful strategy by many people who consider themselves experts on the subject of Presidential campaigns. Even as the mostly supportive media started suggesting that her aversion to questions were starting to become an issue with them, others argued that it was not a problem with the electorate. This was a "vibe" campaign, not necessarily one involved with any deep dive into substance and policy. They were basically using the same strategy that allowed Joe Biden to coast to victory in 2020, even as it turned out much closer than anticipated.

But now that things are not feeling quite as "vibey" apparently people are now questioning the strategy of not doing more interviews and not answering more questions and not engaging more with the people. The polls are not only tightening for her, but Trump seems to be gaining momentum in the battleground states. Betting odds are tightening with many of the oddsmakers now having it an even race.

Meanwhile from one of the advertising angles, you see them poking fun at Harris being a "brat" and "popular internet personality with the kids" and being endorsed by "celebrities" as being inherently unserious and lacking the substance to actually be commander in chief. They are taking her best campaign issue (one of style over substance) and turning it against her.

So at the end of the day, it sounds like Harris and Walz might start sitting down for more interviews. Whether or not they continue to pick and choose friendly forums for these is probably the more important question. Doing more interviews with people who do not challenge them on anything is probably no better than doing no interviews at all. The question becomes whether or not they can hold up under the pressure of doing interviews with anyone other than friendly faces. For Harris to win, she may need to answer that question in a positive way.