Washington Examiner columnist Guy Benson slammed former Vice President Kamala Harris for teasing another presidential campaign, saying she just wants to “stay relevant.”
“I’m not sure she necessarily wants to run, like her husband doesn’t want her to run, like donors don’t want her to run, like a lot of smart Democrats want no part of this, yet again with her,” Benson said Tuesday on Fox Business’s The Evening Edit.
Reporting from the Wall Street Journal indicates Harris’s husband, Doug Emhoff, privately told people he does not want her to run again for president in 2028. Prior losses have also made Democrats wary of whether to embrace her on the campaign trail or steer clear.
Harris is leading possible Democratic candidates at 26.4% in the RealClearPolitics average of polls, which pulls data from other polls. Benson said he believes that comes from “name ID” and “recency bias” but remained adamant that she would be a bad candidate.
“I think she wants to stay relevant to the conversation,” Benson said. “I think she wants people wondering.”
If Harris ran in 2028, it would mark her third bid for the presidency after running in 2020 and 2024. Benson said Harris was “so unpopular” in 2020 that she dropped her bid before the primaries. Instead, Harris joined Joe Biden’s ticket as his running mate, prevailing against President Donald Trump.
After Biden withdrew from the 2024 rematch against Trump, Harris was hastily thrown into the race just three months before Election Day. Benson said she was “crushed” by Trump, who swept all seven swing states.
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Benson said he would be surprised if Harris ran again.
“I’d be doubly surprised if they nominated her again,” Benson said. “This is not a good candidate. She got crushed in 2024, being thrust into that race last minute when they threw out their primary election and sent Joe Biden packing.”
Washington Examiner social media writer and producer Britta Miller contributed to this reporting.