Kamala Harris Is as About as Unlikely as Biden Was to Beat Trump

When Harris loses, Biden can blame Nancy Pelosi, George Clooney, and the New York Times editorial board

“What can be, unburdened by what has been.” Vice President Harris’s official photo.

A CBS News poll of likely voters conducted July 16 to 18—after the assassination attempt but before most of the Republican National Convention—found President Trump leading President Biden, 52 percent to 47 percent, and Trump also leading in a hypothetical matchup against Vice President Harris, 51 percent to 48 percent.

That’s probably a reasonably good handle of what to expect, as far as the effect on the outcome, of the Democrats swapping out Biden for Harris as the presidential candidate.

Minutes after announcing, in social media posts, that he would “stand down” in the race for reelection “in the best interest of my party and the country,” Biden, also in social media posts, endorsed Kamala Harris with his “full support.” Bill and Hillary Clinton also put out a statement that, “We are honored to join with the President in endorsing Vice President Harris and will do whatever we can to support her.” Alex Soros tweeted a photo of himself and Harris and declared, “It’s time for us all to unite around Kamala Harris.”

The advantage of Harris over Biden is that she doesn’t have Biden’s age issue and Biden’s lack-of-clarity-in-communications issue. As a former prosecutor she might be able to make a case against Trump as a “convicted felon.” As a woman she might potentially help press the issue of a conservative-dominated Supreme Court’s overturning Roe v. Wade.

Yet Harris comes with drawbacks, too.