Former Vice President Kamala Harris released the full version of her tell-all political memoir last week, writing in intense detail about the 107 days of her presidential campaign and what she believes were the moments that ultimately cost her the presidency.
The book pulls back the curtain on Harris’s historically short presidential run. But in doing so, it has somehow managed to put the Democratic Party in a worse spot than it once was.
It also did Harris herself no favors as she contemplates another shot at the White House. As longtime Democratic operative David Axelrod put it, “If there’s a political strategy here (for Harris), it’s a bad one.”
The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg, who read the book prior to its release, warned readers that Harris was no longer “interested in holding back.” And indeed, “107 Days” has proved to be even more contentious than imagined.
From her decision not to select former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg as her running mate because of his sexuality to her comments about the “recklessness” of former President Joe Biden seeking reelection, Harris has poured salt on wounds that hadn’t quite yet healed.
Indeed, many Democrats are expressing their frustrations with the book, noting the poor timing of its release, its disloyalty, and the consequences it will almost certainly have on Democrats’ already-fragile brand.
In that same vein, it appears exceedingly obvious that Harris is interested in blaming virtually everyone and everything for her loss aside from herself — the Bidens, the administration, voters’ prejudices, et cetera.
One Democratic strategist argued that the former vice president is “blaming everyone but herself” for November’s catastrophic loss. An adviser to a potential 2028 candidate echoed this, saying that it is “crazy she chose to write a gossip book that prioritizes the pettiness of her politics.”
Harris and her bombshell of a book have shaken up the party, highlighting the inevitable vulnerabilities Democrats must face as the 2026 midterm elections rapidly approach.
For one, Harris’s inability to separate herself from Biden and his policies was a crucial talking point for Republicans last cycle. It is plausible that now, through the release of her memoir, she is trying to change that narrative ahead of another possible bid for the Oval Office.
In a recent sit-down with “The View,” Harris confronted her previous claim that she would not have done anything differently from Biden. She revealed that, at that time, she hadn’t realized “how much people wanted to know there was a difference” between them.
Put another way, Harris is backpedaling. Whether that’s because of future presidential ambitions or for her own morale, it is evident that she has thrown a wrench in Democrats’ plans to finally secure a win against MAGA Republicans in the next few election cycles.
However, the downfall of the Democratic Party cannot be solely attributed to Harris’s book. Rather, it is due to a culmination of internal conflicts, including the absence of a party leader, soft stances on key issues like the economy and immigration and an inability to stand up to the Trump administration.
Unfortunately, “107 Days” was the cherry on top. It reminds the electorate that the left still has not managed to get it together, despite years of public scrutiny and dismal ratings.
According to a new poll from AP-NORC, only 34 percent of Americans hold a favorable view of the Democratic party, while 53 percent view the party unfavorably.
It remains unclear as to who will emerge as the next face of the party, but Harris’ burning of the bridges is certainly doing her no favors. Early primary polling from Atlas Intel shows her trailing California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), whom Harris derided in the book, by 16 points.
That poll is far from an outlier. Of the five most recent polls compiled by RealClearPolitics, Newsom leads in three of them, versus one each for Harris and Pete Buttigieg.
Harris and Newsom have been the loudest voices in the room thus far, but Harris’s book may have tanked her hopes of a second White House bid, irrespective of her ambitions.
Newsom, on the other hand, has put up quite the fight against Trump. The California governor led the opposition to immigration crackdowns, deploying the national guard in Los Angeles and is now at the center of the fight over redistricting.
His approach, which he refers to as the “no regrets strategy,” might just be what liberals across the country are looking for in their next Democratic nominee, as opposed to a losing candidate seemingly more interested in bringing everyone down around her.
Nonetheless, Democrats find themselves at another crossroads, and where they go from here — in regard to both the book as well as the broader issues within the party — will be critical if they are truly serious about winning 2028.
Douglas E. Schoen is a political consultant who served as an adviser to President Bill Clinton and to the 2020 presidential campaign of Michael Bloomberg. He is the author of “The End of Democracy? Russia and China on the Rise and America in Retreat.”
