Bret Baier began his interview with Kamala Harris Wednesday night with a fiery question about immigration, but rather than eliciting any substantive answers, it was more about proving what a tough guy the Fox host is. was intended.
In some ways, Mr. Baier’s aggressive approach is understandable, since he has been under pressure for several days from supporters of Donald Trump. They are confident he will go easy on the Democratic presidential nominee, and maybe even allow her campaign to edit the interview or see questions in advance. I was sure.
So Mr. Baier appeared gunfire, barely allowing the vice president to finish a sentence before diving into rebuttals and arguments.
After playing 10 minutes of “Gotcha” about immigration, Baier pivoted to the obvious next topic, airing a video clip of Harris expressing support for transgender people in prison.
Hatred of immigrants. Transphobia. And then Joe Biden’s age. Baier was studying Fox News’ greatest hits playlist.
This was a grievance play, not political journalism.
But Harris licked her. She had her moments.
Mr. Baier’s colleagues at Fox News then erupted in support for what some saw as corporate damage control. Martha McCollum called Baier’s performance “stunning” and Dana Perino analyzed the interview as “very good.”
I doubt too many viewers agreed. If they went to the show expecting to learn more about Harris’ politics or truly understand her personality, they would have been disappointed. That wasn’t the game plan, and that wasn’t the outcome.
But Harris accomplished something anyway.
Just sitting down with the Fox host, she had a few things to say.
First, she is fearless and willing to address all voters. These days, it’s hard to imagine Donald Trump giving an interview to, say, Rachel Maddow on MSNBC. Just this week, he refused an interview with CNBC and earlier canceled his contract with CBS News 60 Minutes.
Second, Ms. Harris has managed to introduce some slices of reality to loyal Fox viewers who have perhaps not been exposed to the most disturbing criticisms of Trump.
“It means he is unfit for service. It means he is unstable. It means he is dangerous,” she characterized what millions of Americans feel. “And people are exhausted.”
She was also able to address at some length her harsh views on former commander Mark Milley, who held two top military roles during the Trump administration, including chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Milley called Trump a “deep-rooted fascist” and said there has never been anyone more dangerous to the United States.
Perhaps this is what Fox News guru Brian Stelter called the Harris campaign’s “Google strategy.” On CNN, Stelter speculated that viewers might hear these comments and search further online, puncturing the information bubble they’ve been living in.
Make no mistake, the vast majority of regular FOX viewers have made up their minds and are going to support Mr. Trump. Regardless of his mental decline. Regardless of his felony conviction. No matter what threats he made, no matter what threats he made.
But only a small portion of the millions of viewers may have been able to hear a reasonable, sensible and stable alternative to Trump, despite all the noise and interruptions. Perhaps some of them live in Pennsylvania, the battleground states where the interviews were recorded, or in Wisconsin or Michigan.
In this election coin toss, even small adjustments can make a big difference.
