CNN panelist Scott Jennings found a “glaring hole” in the Harris-Walz campaign late Tuesday during the network’s coverage of the 2024 Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago.
Jennings said the DNC has been “well-produced,” praising the speeches of former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, after they took the stage. Despite this, the CNN panelist noted that the convention speeches failed to acknowledge that their party has secured the presidency in three of the previous four presidential elections and that Vice President Kamala Harris is “in the White House right now.”
“I think the contrast that I see — and I don’t know which is gonna win — but we’re seeing the contrast of the politics of combat versus the politics of compassion. That’s what the Obamas were trying to set up tonight, in my judgement,” he argued.
“I should warn my fellow Republicans that we heard two of the greatest political communicators in the country tonight. Now, we had Hulk-a-mania,” Jennings said to the laughter of panelists. “The Democrats have Obama-mania. They ripped the roof off of this place tonight. These Democrats are fired up — they’re not playing. Okay?”
“Yes, they say things that are exaggerations. They do say things about Trump and the Republicans that are outright lies. But the convention is working for Harris, at least as of today,” he continued.
“The gap that I still see in all these speeches, as good as they were, is that she’s in the White House right now,” Jennings said. “Democrats have controlled the White House for 12 of the last 16 years. And for all of the talk about division and the problems of the country, and people are hurting, Democrats have mostly controlled this country. Trump had it for four. The Obamas and Biden had it for the rest of the time. And somehow, it’s still all Trump’s fault, and somehow, she hasn’t been at the center of it. So, to me, that’s still the glaring hole in this campaign that hasn’t yet been solved at the convention.”
“How do you explain all of the problems that will be solved by the person who is currently in there for the last three-and-a-half years who was supposed to already be working on solving it?” Jennings questioned.
Harris was absent from the DNC Tuesday night and instead held an event in Milwaukee — the location of July’s Republican National Convention (RNC) — as delegates engaged in a ceremonial roll call symbolically casting their votes for her by state. The vice president previously received enough votes to secure the Democratic presidential nomination in a virtual roll call in early August. (RELATED: Donald Trump Says RFK Jr. ‘Probably Would’ Have A Role In His Administration)
One month has passed since Harris received President Joe Biden’s endorsement after he announced he will not seek a second term.