Kamala Harris’ campaign officials Stephanie Cutter and Jen O’Malley Dillon recently appeared on the “Pod Save America” podcast to discuss the aftermath of the presidential election. Cutter expressed frustration with the media’s “narrative” surrounding Harris, stating that the campaign was forced to focus on “dumb” questions that didn’t resonate with voters. Dillon agreed, saying that the media didn’t ask questions that were relevant to the election.
According to Dillon, the campaign tried to define Harris’ message in their own way, but felt constrained by the narrative that they were not doing enough earned media. She suggested that this was partly due to the double standard that Trump did not have to deal with.
Cutter elaborated, saying that the campaign had to decide whether doing more earned media would help or hurt their narrative. She also expressed frustration with the way the media coverage was reported, stating that it was based on a “myopic mindset” that didn’t align with what voters cared about.
Dillon, who has also served as the campaign’s manager, downplayed the idea that Harris was “afraid to have interviews,” calling it “completely bulls—” and part of a standard that Trump never had to worry about. She suggested that the campaign was unfairly criticized for not doing enough interviews, while Trump was not held to the same standard.
The conversation on the podcast has been met with criticism, with some calling the excuses “lame” and “disappointing.”