CHRIS CRUCIAL: Kamala steps in it 💩

PLUS: The Wisconsin Senate race tightens!

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Apologies for the slightly-late arrival of the newsletter tonight. Spent all day at a shoot for my new sports and politics show! Thanks as always for your understanding and support — Chris

1. Harris’ ‘View’ mistake

Sometimes it’s the softball interviews that trip you up. You feel like you’re among friends — and you let your guard down. And you say something you absolutely shouldn’t.

That’s what happened to Vice President Kamala Harris Tuesday during an interview on the popular ABC chat show “The View.”

Asked whether she would have done anything differently than Joe Biden had she been president for the last four years, Harris said this:

There is not a thing that comes to mind … and I’ve been part of most of the decisions that have had impact.

Which is politically dumb. For two reasons.

First, as I have said before in this space, neither Biden nor his policies on major issues like immigration or the economy are popular with voters.

As a general rule, it is not smart to align yourself — hook, line and sinker — with a guy who has had an approval rating at 40% (or worse) for the last 18 months.

The second reason that Harris slipped up is that she didn’t offer ANY hedges. She said — in one clear sentence — that she wouldn’t do ANYTHING different that Biden.

You do not need to be a Republican ad-making wizard to see that Harris line — “There is not a thing that comes to mind” — and think: We HAVE to get the video and audio of her saying that in commercials immediately.

And the thing about all of this is that Harris could have easily dodged this. She could have said something like: “I don’t agree with anyone 100% of the time. And the times that I disagreed with President Biden, I made sure he knew my views. But as president he had the final say.”

Like, I am not even asking Harris to have a “Sister Souljah” moment with Biden — although I think if would be very smart for her to find somewhere to break with the incumbent, perhaps on immigration policy.

I am simply suggesting that giving a total rubber stamp to everything Biden has done over the last four years — when you KNOW plenty of that stuff is not popular — makes zero political sense.

Doing it on camera in a way that can be readily made into a soundbite for a TV ad from your opponent makes it even worse.

Now, I know some people will say that Harris has to support Biden because, if she doesn’t, she runs the risk of losing Democratic voters who love him.

Really? Do you really believe that when faced with the prospect of a 2nd term for Donald Trump, Democrats are going to say “Well, I like Harris but why doesn’t she support every single thing Joe Biden did as president?”

No way in hell. Ain’t happening.

This was a unforced error by Harris. And she can’t afford to make many more of those in the final month of the campaign.

2. Wisconsin Senate now a toss up

Democrats’ chances of holding the Senate majority are dimming by the day.

The latest piece of bad news comes in Wisconsin where the nonpartisan Cook Political Report with Amy Walter moved the race from “lean Democratic” to “toss up” on Tuesday.

“Though [Sen. Tammy] Baldwin may have a small but consistent lead, the near-parity in spending and tightening internal polls show that, despite his early missteps, [GOP nominee Eric] Hovde has closed the gap,” wrote Cook Senate editor Jessica Taylor.

Baldwin has been proven remarkably resilient despite the swing nature of Wisconsin. In 2018, she won with 55% and in 2012 she took 51.5% against popular former governor Tommy Thompson.

Hovde, a wealthy businessman, got off to a slow start in the general election campaign but appears to have found his footing of late.

With the move, Cook now ranks three Democratic seats in its “toss up” category: Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin. The West Virginia seat where Sen. Joe Manchin is retiring is rated as “solid Republican.” And Sen. Jon Tester’s uphill race in Montana is “lean Republican.”

That, in and of itself, is a problem for a party with a single seat majority. But the issue for Senate Democrats is compounded when you look at the dearth of opportunities they have of knocking off GOP incumbents.

The Cook Report currently ranks only one GOP seat as “lean Republican”: The Texas seat held by Sen. Ted Cruz. The Florida seat held by Sen. Rick Scott and the Nebraska seat held by Sen. Deb Fischer are rated as “likely Republican.”

3. To Russia, with love

Donald Trump likes to say that “no one” has been tougher on Russia than him. Well….

According to new reporting by the Washington Post’s Bob Woodward, Trump sent Covid test kits to Russian President Vladimir Putin during the early days of the pandemic — Putin was apparently terrified of getting sick — and has talked to his Russian counterpart at least 7 times since leaving office in 2021.

“None of these made-up stories by Bob Woodward are true,” a Trump spokesman said of the Woodward book.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I made a video for my YouTube channel today detailing the many connections (and kind words) between Trump and Putin over the years. Check it out!

NOTABLE QUOTABLE

“That son of a bitch, Bibi Netanyahu, he’s a bad guy. He’s a bad fucking guy!” — President Joe Biden, on the Israeli prime minister

ONE GOOD CHART

I notice that English major didn’t make this chart from USA Facts 😂😂😂

SONG OF THE DAY

If I had to pick my favorite singer songwriter, I think I would pick Jason Isbell. A recording of a show he played at the Ryman in Nashville is now out — and it’s terrific. Here’s him doing “24 Frames” and “When We Were Close.”

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