A key Obama-era strategist says Kamala Harris may be riding the hype wave, but it's still Trump's race to lose

[RicoSuave102954]

• Swapping Biden for Harris doesn't mean the Democratic Party is guaranteed a win this November.
• Former Obama advisor David Axelrod says, "it's absolutely Trump's race to lose right now."
• "Everybody should be sober about that on the Democratic side," Axelrod told CNN.

Vice President Kamala Harris is still in for a tough fight if she wants to beat former President Donald Trump this November, says former Obama advisor David Axelrod.

Axelrod told CNN's Jessica Dean in an interview on Saturday that Democratic supporters may be getting ahead of themselves if they think Harris is a shoo-in this November.

"There's a lot of irrational exuberance on the Democratic side of the aisle right now because there was despair for some period of time about what November was gonna look like," Axelrod said.

Harris' ascension as presumptive Democratic nominee on Tuesday capped off weeks of uncertainty in the Democratic Party after party leaders began to question Biden's ability to win given his age.

The president had faced growing calls from party leaders and donors to step down after giving a disastrous performance in a debate with Trump in late June. Biden eventually dropped out of the race on July 21 and endorsed Harris as his successor.

But replacing Biden with Harris doesn't mean Trump's defeat is now certain, says Axelrod, who served as the key strategist behind President Barack Obama's victories in the 2008 and 2012 elections.

"Now people feel like there's a chance. But it's absolutely Trump's race to lose right now. He is ahead, and he is ahead in most battleground states," Axelrod said.

"I think it's a wide-open race but Trump had the advantage right now and everybody should be sober about that on the Democratic side," he added.

For their part, the Trump campaign had long been preparing to battle a Biden-led Democratic ticket.

"I don't think Joe Biden has a ton of advantages. But I do think Democrats do," Trump's campaign advisor Susie Wiles told The Atlantic's Tim Alberta in March.

In fact, Biden's sudden departure seems to have caught them off guard, with Trump's running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, even telling donors last month that the last-minute switch to Harris felt like a "political sucker punch."

Representatives for the Harris and Trump campaigns did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.

MSN

 

[MeetTheFerentzes]

Rent free

 

[Colonoscopy]

It's not clear how it's going to play out. Everyone is rushing to conclusions. I heard Kamala commercial today. Really need to work on her voice.

 

[hexumhawk]

I told everyone that you would get a nauseating level of Harris push by the media/polls to try and sway anyone that would listen. Her problem will come when she actually has to speak to the last 4 years and what a clown show she has had under her watch. You can only ride a manufactured wave for so long.

 

[littlez]

It's not clear how it's going to play out. Everyone is rushing to conclusions. I heard Kamala commercial today. Really need to work on her voice.

Yep, that's it. Her voice will stop her from winning.

 

[MitchLL]

Momentum like this before the Dems even have their convention is a big deal and even Republicans would acknowledge this.
In reality, it's similar to the momentum Republicans had before their's after the Biden debate performance.
How the Trump campaign managed to lose their polling lead so fast is really remarkable.
A true comparison can be made within a week of the DNC.

Even die hard Republicans have to admit the tables have turned...a lot.

 

[Colonoscopy]

Yep, that's it. Her voice will stop her from winning.

No, and not that I care that much about voice. But if you're trying to pull new people in and excite people nasally droning doesn't work too well.

Al Gore was also a bore this way