After a widely praised presidential campaign kick-off rally in Oakland, Calif., on Sunday, Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) went to Iowa for a CNN-televised town hall on Monday night. As she had in Oakland, Harris came across as warm, passionate and focused.
She’s plainly running against Trump’s nativism, bigotry and misogyny, yet rather than fight on his terms, she comes back to a unifying message. “The vast majority of us have so much more in common than what separates us, and we need leadership in this country that recognizes that,” she declared
Follow Jennifer Rubin's opinionsFollow
She has got the small things right — repeating the questioner’s name, making eye contact, speaking to the questioner and throwing in plenty of personal references to her own formative experiences. (“My mother used to have a saying, and she would say to me: ‘Kamala, you may be the first to do many things, but make sure you’re not the last.’”)
On her record on criminal-justice reform, she has an effective comeback:
Kamala Harris on criticism of criminal justice record: I've "been consistent my whole career" https://t.co/MFrqHVA5d0 #HarrisTownHall pic.twitter.com/MxPT8EQwNU
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) January 29, 2019
Her opponents will have to do more than launch broad-brush attacks to throw her off balance.
All of that said, you could see where the trouble spots will be, especially in a general election, should she be the nominee. Her emphatic answer on Medicare-for-all will be unnerving even to some Democrats. “Let’s eliminate all of that. Let’s move on," she said when asked about people keeping their private insurance.
Indeed by Tuesday morning Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) was already sounding a cautionary note:
Asked about Kamala Harris' endorsement of Medicare for All, Klobuchar says she supports a public option, but stops short of Harris' position.
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 29, 2019
"I believe we need to provide universal coverage to every American... There are many ways you could get there." pic.twitter.com/TsB2TF6BiD
Klobuchar’s position is more practical and politically feasible, but if she (or other moderates run) she will have to make “radical moderation” a virtue.
Getting push too far to the left is not a problem unique to Harris. All the Democratic candidates face the same challenge, namely how to capture the enthusiasm of their progressive base without setting themselves up in the general election to be painted as wide-eyed socialists. One hopes in the back of their minds (or their campaign teammates' minds), whenever they set out an uncompromisingly progressive position, there is a voice whispering, “How is this going to sound to independents in Wisconsin or lapsed Republicans in Arizona?”) Harris and others might consider talking in “goals” — “I think we should get to a system of Medicare-for-all” — that leaves room for discussion on how we transition to nirvana, how we pay for it and how we develop political consensus.
Nevertheless, such concerns at this stage in the campaign (when virtually no one other than media and political junkies is paying attention) are not what matter (to the extent anything 13 months before the Iowa caucuses matter). If candidates aim to make an impression, set a tone and help voters differentiate themselves from the others in a fleet of candidates, Harris is doing as well or better than anyone.
Read more: