Psyche! That was a trick headline. Kamala Harris would never have made it to a 2028 primary.
Instead, Politico reports that we may not, in Richard Nixon's words, have Harris to kick around in 2027. That's not because Harris won't toss her hat into the ring, but because no one will be around to buy the hat for her. Democrat donors and organizers went on the record to send the message to the 2024 nominee via Politico to stop wasting everyone's time, including her own:
Kamala Harris has kept the door open to running for president again in 2028. What she failed to do over the past year, even onetime supporters and allies of the former vice president say, is give voters a reason to reconsider her if she does.
For Harris, according to interviews with nearly 20 Democratic Party donors and strategists in California and across the country, it was a missed opportunity to redefine herself — and ultimately a wasted year.
“She totally blew it,” said Doug Herman, who was a lead mail strategist for Barack Obama’s 2008 and 2012 campaigns. “She hasn’t gotten into the mix.”
Harris has offered voters almost nothing in the way of specifics about how she would remake a Democratic Party hungry for change after another term of Donald Trump. She hasn’t spoken to how she would expand her own appeal to the voters who rejected her, and she remains as reticent of media as ever, continuing to favor appearances before friendly audiences and at times drawing fire for shutting out news organizations altogether. She has entirely sidestepped the ideological civil war consuming the Democrats and has acted more like a party elder at a time when voters and donors are demanding a break with the past.
Golly, that seems rather harsh. Can't these Democrats imagine what is possible with Kamala, unburdened by what has been?
Actually, it appears that these Democrats see exactly what is possible with Harris, which is nothing better than a rerun of disaster from 2024. That final paragraph in the excerpt from Politico doesn't just describe Harris' politicking since 2024, but also her politicking in the 2024 campaign itself. Harris never offered a vision of what she would do differently from Joe Biden. She never attempted to expand her appeal. Harris barely interacted with the press during her 107-day campaign, and every interaction turned into a disaster on the rare occasions she did. Rather than offer a clear and original approach to a presidential campaign, Harris did nothing but talk about Donald Trump and how he should be disqualified from the election.
Two years later, Harris had not learned a darned thing. And Democrats have noticed. The most remarkable aspect of this Politico piece is how all of the sources are on the record to blast Harris and tell her to find something else to do. A couple of sources remain anonymous, but most people don't have any fear of Harris and want to make sure their comments stick. That speaks volumes about how Democrat donors and organizers see the 2027-8 primary cycle.
Politico's Melanie Mason and Jeremy B. White don't hold back much in their analysis, either. They note that her book failed to launch when her actions failed to meet her rhetoric. As always, Harris remains entirely adrift on policy, especially policy specifics. Even when she manages to latch onto a significant policy position, Harris inevitably backtracks when confronted with criticism or a need to explain specifics. Politico paints her as a mile wide and an inch deep, which is exactly what she demonstrated in both 2019 and 2024.
Even her own husband, the former Second Gentleman, may not back Harris for another run. The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Doug Emhoff is telling donors he's a no:
As former Vice President Kamala Harris lays the groundwork for a potential third presidential campaign, her husband has privately told some people he would prefer she didn’t run and some donors have told her directly that a bid would be a long shot, according to people familiar with the conversations. ...
Many Democrats, including some who remain close to her, think the party needs to put forward a fresh candidate in the 2028 election. Unlike in 2024, when the party coalesced around Harris in the aftermath of Biden’s exit, she is expected to face a crowded field if she were to run again.
Harris’s husband, Doug Emhoff, is among those who have shared concerns with others about another run, though people close to him expect he will support her if she decides to run.
Yikes. At least one of them has a rational view of what is possible with Kamala.
This certainly sounds like a concerted effort to convince Harris to shut it down now. The Democrat Party can't afford to relitigate the Biden Regency, a conspiracy to cover up Joe Biden's dementia in which the sitting VP had to have played a role. With the midterms approaching their end, the 2027-8 presidential primary contest will start shortly. This looks like a clear message from the party establishment: Get out.
Will she listen? Doubtful. Harris passed on a shot at the California gubernatorial election to keep her powder dry for 2028. She has almost no other options, although Emhoff does; he returned to his law practice and bought an $8 million home in Malibu. Maybe she should seek out a partnership somewhere with a healthy wine budget and get out of the way where she can be unburdened by what was. And what would have been.
Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.
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