Kamala Harris and the Art of the Dodge
Vice President Kamala Harris – March 4, 2021. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)
Dodging questions is not unique to Vice President Harris or to politicians of either major party. They all do it. The reason it’s called an “art” is that some do it better than others.
The dodge is best done discreetly and with a feeble, but quick answer, followed by a deflection to a preferred subject.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz was asked three times during his debate with Colin Allred if he supports three exceptions to abortion laws. In each case, he ignored the question, and not artfully. To Cruz’s credit, he can answer most questions and usually does.
Harris gets into trouble because she has difficulty answering any question – and answers with verbal crutches such as the “Middle-Class Kid” routine. Once the public notices that no questions are being answered, a candidate may be looking at trouble.
AUDIO: Random Samplings of a Logical Mind
The “ignore the question” technique.
This may be the way most politicians do it. They hear the question, but simply pretend it was a different question. It goes something like this:
Reporter: You talk a lot about a woman’s right to choose, but doesn’t it come own to whether an unborn child is human or not? If it’s human, how can you kill it? And how do you determine when it becomes human?
Politician: No government should tell a woman what to do with her own body. These types of decisions are best left to a woman and her doctor.
Note that the politician here stayed on subject, but the answer reflected a position that is popular with some voters – obviously the ones that politician is trying to cultivate. But the actual question had to do with the humanity of an unborn child. That is a question that’s very difficult for a pro-abortion candidate to answer. So, they dodge the question altogether, and instead answer a question about government interference in a woman’s decision.
Video: The Cruz-Allred debate – Sen. Cruz artfully dodges.
Video: At 1:38, Bill Whitaker asks Harris a question. She dodges by changing the subject.
The “I don’t like your question” technique.
This is a style where the politician references the reporter’s question as being deficient and tells him so.
Reporter: Your party has gone on record as opposing fossil fuels and planning to transition to a renewable energy society within 30 years. How do you plan to accomplish that?
Politician: The real question is how soon can we get started? I’d say we need a comprehensive plan to go away with internal-combustion vehicles and start building a future based on renewables and all the jobs that would create.
In this case, the politician has made the reporter look bad and he’s not likely to come back with the same question. Also, the politician has turned the conversation away from the “how” part of this transition, which is hard to answer, and moved to a pleasant-sounding generic answer that says nothing.
Video: Harris demonstrates the “I don’t like your question” technique.
The “memorized answer” technique.
Vice President Harris uses this one a lot. This technique involves memorizing a stock answer for every question that might be asked.
Reporter: Inflation has soared during your administration. Gasoline prices have doubled. Food costs are up 30 percent. What will you do in your next term to stop the inflation and bring these prices down?
Politician: I was born a middle-class kid. I was raised by a single mom who worked to save money to buy our first house…
This is a Kamala Harris favorite. She was anything but a middle-class kid. Her mother was a cancer research scientist and her father was a Marxist professor at Berkeley.
Video: The old “Middle-Class Kid” routine…
The idea here is to deflect to the politician’s life experiences to create empathy with people paying higher prices. This technique is usually deployed when there is no easy answer to a question and anything the politician might say will be challenged. It’s best just to head of down a rabbit hole and hope for the best. The veracity of the answer is irrelevant. A lie works as well as the truth.
RELATED: Will Kamala Harris clean up the Joe Biden Mess?
The “but my opponent” technique.
This a technique much used in the Donald Trump era. The idea is that no matter had bad I have been, my opponent is or would be worse.
Reporter: Your administration has declared a war on fossil fuels, and has set limits or attempted to on the types of household appliances people can use. Are you trying to control how people live their lives?
Politician: My opponent is a threat to our democracy. He would be a dictator on Day One. He cannot be trusted.
This technique somewhat admits to the substance of the question, but seems to say – yes, I’m bad but my opponent is worse. The politician hopes the follow-up question will be about the opponent.
Video: The FOX News interview with Bret Baier – Biden was okay but Trump is worse.
The “talking points” technique.
Rather than long memorized answers to anticipated questions, this technique involves memorizing shorter talking points and spouting them as necessary to avoid answering.
Reporter: Will you send Israel the weapons it needs to wipe out, once and for all, the threats of Hamas and Hezbollah?
Politician: We stand with Israel.
Yes, but will you supply the weapons? That never is answered in a talking points retort. If the question is asked again, there will be another talking point, but never specifics.
Kamala Harris and speaking in platitudes.
Harris has become accomplished in speaking in platitudes. She wants to spread joy. She wants to unify America. She stands behind Israel. She wants an “opportunity economy.” I’m waiting for her to say “a chicken in every pot.” What we never get from her is where the chickens will come from. How much will they cost? Who provides the pots?
Video: Platitudes, then nothing…
As much as anything, Harris dodges questions because she does not understand the issues. No one has ever accused her of being fully acquainted with current events. She seems oblivious to them. On the other hand, she is defending a failed administration that is the most unpopular since Jimmy Carter’s. Admittedly, that’s tough, and it explains a lot of her non-answers.
That doesn’t explain why other politicians dodge questions, yet virtually all of them do. Reporters sometime drag an answer out of them, but it’s never easy. A good reporter will press until it’s obvious that the politician isn’t going to answer.
Of course, some people in office are comfortable with answering questions because they are comfortable with their records and political accomplishments. Ronald Reagan comes to mind. Reagan could give straight answers and usually did.
RELATED: Democrat Fixations Aim to Keep Trump Out of Power
But why do so many of today’s pols resist giving actual answers, and why do so many walk on eggshells trying to avoid answering?
Those are great questions and I would answer them if I could. We could always try asking them! But they’d find a way to slither out of answering. After all, the dodge is an art that too many of them have mastered.
Lynn Woolley is a Texas-based author, broadcaster, and songwriter. Follow his podcast at https://www.PlanetLogic.us. Check out his author’s page at https://www.Amazon.com/author/lynnwoolley.
Order books direct from Lynn at https://PlanetLogicPress.Square.Site. Email Lynn at lwoolley9189@gmail.com.
Two 5-star ratings and one 4-star on Goodreads.com.
