Ultimately, staff rotations are inevitable. Harris should have the flexibility to hire advisers and staff she knows and trusts who fully understand her and how she operates so that she can better serve the President’s agenda and the needs of the American people.

“Get her out of the stagnation associated with Washington”

Michael Starr Hopkins is a Democratic strategist who has participated in the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John Delaney.

Women politicians are too closely watched. It is an unfair reality. The only way to counter this cruel truth is to take more political risks and interact with more voters. Kamala Harris should take advantage of the mid-sessions to embark on the electoral campaign and find her voice. Genuine moments were few and far between for the VP, so the goal should be for her to drop the notes and allow herself to be in the moment. It’s no mistake that she rose through the ranks and made history in such an incredible way; she is extremely talented. But, from the moment she left the stage at her presidential launch rally, she hasn’t been able to find her voice. Now is his best chance.

Mid-sessions are a perfect opportunity to remind voters how Vice President Harris became the first female Vice President and why she is the next presidential candidate. Supporting young, fresh-faced candidates – like Mandela Barnes in Wisconsin or Malcolm Kenyatta in Pennsylvania – would not only be good for Harris’ brand, but it would pull it out of the stagnation associated with Washington and create a new, more positive narrative.

“Voters care about the person and wonder if they are three-dimensional and sympathetic”

Liz Mair is a Republican strategist who has worked on the campaigns of John McCain, Scott Walker, Roy Blunt, Rand Paul, Carly Fiorina and Rick Perry.

People just hate politicians who read as inauthentic – and Kamala Harris has been breathing that more and more since the first Democratic presidential debate. She must find out who she really is by performing an audit of her closest friends and family and of the advisers who brought her to the Senate – not those who worked with her as vice president. That means a lot more people who knew her well in California, like Ace Smith, and not people who knew her in the nation’s capital. Part of that may be happening right now with departures and staff changes already underway; now is the perfect time.

Then she has to look into whoever or whatever Kamala is – the warts and everything. People may not like this version of her either. But at least they’ll be confident they’re seeing the real her. As it stands, she has gained a reputation for adapting too much to political winds – dismissing her experience as a tough prosecutor, for example, which, along with concerns about increasing crime, could in fact help him.

This audit should also focus on non-political qualities and capacities. People think it’s sexist to say that she could do better by being a guest on a cooking show and making jerk chicken, but politicians have also taken great advantage of cooking and food-related things. . (Fun fact: The Harris Teeter in Arlington used to give out free cookbooks filled with recipes from people like Tom Daschle and Joe Lieberman – it’s actually our family’s favorite and most used cookbook.) I don’t know. if she likes sports, but it also works. Obama got so much traction and love from people who weren’t at all political, and not die-hard Democrats, because of his interest and willingness to talk basketball. The March Madness basketball games we hosted as part of the 2008 John McCain Campaign were a huge success. Many people loved the fact that former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was not only a very intelligent woman with incredible foreign policy skills, but she could also play the piano like a virtuoso and she really liked football. Voters care about the person and that he is three-dimensional and sympathetic. Politics is not really what they are concerned with.

Another concern I hear a lot about Harris is that she just isn’t ready to take on the presidency. So use this time to deepen foreign and defense policy, two areas that are really at the heart of the president’s job. Immigration policy and practice is important. Voting rights too. But neither talks about the president’s job the way a deep immersion in China’s issues and politics would.

“She should quickly reshape herself as a West Wing Subject Matter Expert”

Charles Ellison is a political strategist, producer and talk radio host.

Clearly, current Kamala Harris reporting contains elements of a very well-coordinated smear campaign that is unprecedented in its scale and level of obsession with the inner workings of a Vice President’s office. Which elected official is not a difficult boss?