2/2(Hubris and propaganda)
Harris will be in suburban Philadelphia on Wednesday for a CNN town hall, as some Democrats in Pennsylvania have sounded alarms. The Cook Political Report recently moved the race between Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.) and his Republican challenger, Dave McCormick, to the “tossup” category. (The Michigan and Wisconsin Senate races are also in that category.)
Some in the party have privately criticized Harris’s Pennsylvania campaign manager, Nikki Lu, with top state Democrats complaining to the campaign leadership about her management. One state Democrat cited a number of concerns, including a delay in getting yard signs for voters and limited communication with key state leaders and surrogates.
A Harris campaign spokesperson noted that former Obama adviser Paulette Aniskoff joined the campaign in September to focus on get-out-the-vote efforts, working with Lu and two other senior advisers. Campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said the campaign isrunning “the largest and most sophisticated operation in Pennsylvania history,” stressing that they have 50 offices and 400 staff on the ground.
Trump’s campaign has aired ads criticizing Harris for past comments about taxpayer-funded surgeries for transgender prisoners, which some Democrats have acknowledged have been effective.Republicans also see Trump’s advantage over Harris on the economy as an asset. The former president is continuing to reach out to male voters, including plans to appear Friday on Joe Rogan’s podcast.
Privately, the Harris campaign remains confident in its approach to the seven major battleground states. In a meeting this month with top donors in Philadelphia, O’Malley Dillon said the campaign was well-positioned to win if it executed on its ground game and plans during the final weeks. The Trump campaign has largely outsourced its voter outreach operation to outside groups.
“She was loose,” said one attendee of the meeting of the campaign’s National Finance Committee. “She didn’t project anything other than confidence.”
As a way of channeling their nervous energy, several wealthy Democratic donors, who have already given large amounts to the campaign, are now fanning out to swing states to help canvas and drive voters to the polls in the final days.
David Plouffe, a top strategist for the campaign, said in an interview with journalist John Heilemann’s “Impolitic” podcast this week that the race “has basically been 48-48%, 48-47%” in the three blue-wall states but the campaign thinks it is in a stronger position to reach undecided voters.
“Here’s why I’m still confident—cautiously confident,” Plouffe said. “I still think we have a higher ceiling, meaning which of these candidates is likely to get 49.5% or 50% of the vote in more states.”
He added that Trump remains “more reliant on first-time voters, irregular voters. And the early voting data we’re seeing so far, there is no suggestion that they are turning out a bunch of irregular voters.”
Early voting data so far shows Republicans embracing voting before Election Day more than they have in the past and eating into Democrats’ typical advantage. Experts think those people are likely Republicans who usually vote for the party and just chose to vote early this year, but the numbers have added to Democrats’ anxiety.
The campaign has been lining up big-name celebrities to help turn out the vote, with events in recent days with musicians Lizzo and Usher and an appearance by rapper Eminem on Tuesday night in Detroit with former President Barack Obama.
The Harris campaign announced that rock star Bruce Springsteen would join Harris and Obama for a concert and rally Thursday in Atlanta. Springsteen will also join Obama for a concert and rally Monday in Philadelphia, the campaign said.
https://archive.is/zbBNw