It has been a month since Vice President Kamala Harris became the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. And a glorious month it’s been for Democrats, with an energized party, large, enthusiastic crowds, and adoring press coverage. “Our next president brings the joy,” said Tim Walz, her vice-presidential choice, at a rally in Detroit.

But with all the kumbaya—despite fears of a 1968 reprise, the Dems have put on a mostly drama-free show in Chicago—Harris has avoided saying a single substantive thing, either about her record as vice president or the kind of policies she hopes to enact if she is elected. Her speeches have been heavy on the rhetoric and light on the substance. Most notable of all is that she has yet to give either a press conference or an interview—not even for a hagiographic profile in Time magazine.

What is Kamala Harris afraid of? 

The reasons for Harris’s evasion of the press are her own, but we think she has two chief motivations. First, she understands that without having to answer tough questions, she never has to worry about straying from her message. The second is that Harris doesn’t want to answer direct questions about her record—and her plans for the future—because both are lacking.