Some Democrats are worried about Harris’s political prospects – By Cleve R. Wootson Jr. (The Washington Post) / Jan 30, 2023
As a longtime leader of the Cobb County Democrats, Jacquelyn Bettadapur has become highly attuned to the factors shaping her party’s fortunes in her home state of Georgia: the rise and fall of Stacey Abrams, Democrats’ unexpected surge in 2020, the enduring influence of Donald Trump.
Now, Bettadapur is worried about the political prospects of the woman positioned to be President Biden’s heir — Vice President Harris.
“People are poised to pounce on anything — any misstep, any gaffe, anything she says — and so she’s probably not getting the benefit of the doubt,” said Bettadapur, who recently stepped down as county party chair. Many Democrats, Bettadapur said, “don’t know enough about what she’s doing” — and, she added, “it doesn’t help that she’s not [that] adept as a communicator.”
Such concerns about Harris’s political strength were repeated often by more than a dozen Democratic leaders in key states interviewed for this story, some speaking on the condition of anonymity to convey candid thoughts. Harris’s tenure has been underwhelming, they said, marked by struggles as a communicator and at times near-invisibility, leaving many rank-and-file Democrats unpersuaded that she has the force, charisma and skill to mount a winning presidential campaign.
