Ex-Trump WH official says Harris is ‘right to see herself as the underdog’

Donald Trump launching new attacks on Kamala Harris during his campaign swing through the southwest. CNN's Elena Treen is in Las Vegas for us. That's where the former president held an event earlier this afternoon. Elena, how is Trump reacting to Kamala Harris's convention speech last night, which was so well-received? well, Wolf, he clearly didn't like it. And you could see that not even just from his remarks today, but also last night he did really a live play by play of reacting to Harris's remarks in real time. You saw him posting several times on Truth Social, attacking her remarks, but also went and did an interview with Fox News after that, where he continued to slam her. But like one of his key lines of attacks against her is that he felt it was wrong that she was spending so much time attacking him, mentioning his name rather than talking about policies. Take a listen to what he said here in Nevada. She mentioned the Trump name many, many times, like 19 or 21 or something. She didn't mention the border. She didn't mention inflation. She didn't mention the bad economy. She didn't mention crime. Did you see the beginning? Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank thank you, thank thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank thank thank thank you. I said, what the hell is wrong with her? But then she recovered. She did much better. But. But she didn't tell anything. She didn't say anything. Now, Wolf, where you saw him? There, mocking Harris. I mean, that is a very classic Trump line of attack. He did that repeatedly to Joe Biden throughout his time on the campaign trail. He's now, of course, trying to use that method of attack against Harris. but look, it's clear as well that she's been getting under his skin. I've been talking to Donald Trump's allies, and they've said, you can clearly see that he's very frustrated with the enthusiasm that she continues to sustain and the energy that surrounded her, particularly this week in Chicago. Now, Donald Trump also, criticized her for her plan, for no taxes on tips. That's something that Donald Trump first proposed at a Las Vegas rally in June. That was really what this event today in Nevada was all about, about trying to court some of the hospitality workers, the service workers that make up such a big part of this state's economy. He said that Harris was stealing his plan. He called her a copycat and a liar, and said that she can't come up with ideas or unknown, so she has to steal his. I will note, though, that many policy experts argue that neither of them have shared detailed plans on how to actually eliminate taxes on tips and say that would be very hard to do. And just very quickly, Wolf, I do want to bring up as well what he also discussed, which was RFK Junior's endorsement. He thanked him, said that he, is looking forward to seeing him later tonight. And we have some new reporting that RFK Jr is going to appear at that Arizona rally with Donald Trump this evening. You'll see them side by side, something that Donald Trump's team is very much excited about and had been working toward for several weeks now. Well, Elena Treanor reporting for us, Elena, thank you very, very much. I want to bring in our political experts for some analysis right now. Jeff Zeleny, you and I were both in Chicago. We could see the enthusiasm in the Democratic Party as it unfolded over those four days. How does Kamala Harris keep that momentum going now? Wolf, the enthusiasm was so palpable, as was the unity inside the Democratic Party. And that is perhaps one thing that, we sort of take for granted now. But that would not have had to be the case, given everything that happened over the last month with the Democratic Party. But leaving the convention, talking to Democrats, they are they are energized. They are, enthused. But there is no doubt that at least the vice president believes that she is still the underdog. And I really pressed some of her advisers today. Does she really does she really think that? And they said, this is how she is, approaching this race. She met with some, supporters last evening after that speech you're seeing there on the screen. And she said, look, tonight is great, but now we have to get back to work. So, they are viewing this as one more sort of, piece of the, the, a wave of momentum that she's had in the first month. But they realize as well that the, next 74 days or so are unlikely to be as lofty or soaring as these. But I'm told right now she's already, turned her attention to the debate. so her campaign is going to be campaigning. All those Democratic governors we saw on stage this week are going to be out campaigning on her behalf. She'll be campaigning some, but not nearly as much as she has been, because she has to prepare for that debate 18 days. That is the of of the next, a real moment here, the big moment, perhaps the defining moment of this campaign, Wolf, she has never been in the same room as Donald Trump or on stage with him at a close to close range. That's how, you know, sort of unusual this moment is, but it's so significant. So I'm told she's turning her attention now to that. Tens and tens of millions of Americans will be watching that debate to be sure. Sure. Alyssa Farah Griffin here with us as well. How successful do you think Kamala Harris was? in appealing to moderates and independents during the course of the convention? And how does she move the needle with those voters? Now, listen, this was a historic and remarkably well executed Democratic National Convention. having Republicans come out. Endorser, my friend and former colleague Adam Kinzinger, Jeff Duncan, the former lieutenant governor of Georgia, as well as some Trump administration, officials. But also, I was paying most attention to the words she was using and the things she was saying. And that that clip that you played at the top resonated with me last night where she said she asked independents or Republicans for their votes, juxtaposed to Donald Trump, who said, we don't want the Nikki Haley voters, much less trying to bring in Democrats. So I think she she she is running knowing that she needs to bring in some folks who wouldn't traditionally necessarily be with her. I thought it was a very smart message, but now she's going to have to answer some really tough questions around policy. Luckily, Donald Trump also has some weaknesses around policy. So I think who can first define where they're going to stand and moderate toward the middle is the person who's going to win. Let me bring him across into this conversation. Misha, how does a Kamala Harris navigate this next stretch? It's a critical stretch of this campaign where she'll have to take more press questions. For example, she'll have to debate Trump, and she'll have to get more specific on policy. Well, we know she's going to be laser focused on preparation for this upcoming debate. not only because she has not personally debated Trump before, but because we've seen many a Democrat, as well as many Republicans fall into, fall into trappings, so to speak, of how to debate Donald Trump because he is so, so much of a nonconventional debater. I think that there is a lot of pressure around what that's actually going to look like in real time, and the fact that the man is unraveling before our eyes, acknowledging that he's running against a black woman. All that said, she also recognizes that she is the underdog in this race. So we're going to see more, more movement in the battlegrounds only from her, but more so from her. Crickets as well. Acknowledging that this truncated time frame is what it is, the DNC brought a lovefest of Democrats, independents, as well as moderates and some Republicans to Chicago, my home town. I'm still here, to actually celebrate what this new ticket is. But that does not mean that this is going to be smooth sailing through November. She recognizes that, and the investment in the rollout as it relates to digital campaign ads that are going to come after September 1st, after Labor Day. That's going to be huge. We know that the influencer community is huge in bringing in consistent younger voters, but moreover, it's going to be organizing on the ground, getting people to understand and acknowledge her story. being very strategic about the rollout of what her policy plans actually are. We already heard an economic agenda, but putting the nuts and bolts together of that economic agenda, specifically in the battleground states, is what we're going to see next. Jeff, Kamala Harris said she would do a media sit down interview by the end of this month. Clearly, the clock is ticking. What's the latest? What are you hearing? well, if we don't know specifics, but, talking to her advisers, they say she will likely still hold that to pledge they're not to backing away from it. I don't anticipate it in the coming days, but I do believe before Labor Day that something that she's likely to do, if nothing else, just to sort of, get away from the the a question and the growing storyline. Why isn't she taking questions? I mean, up until now, she's had, had a very scripted, campaign, which is not necessarily easy, but it's not, as, sort of challenging as the unscripted moments. But I think one of the best ways to prepare for that big debate is taking questions from an interviewer. So I do believe that will happen. Of course, many people are vying for it. we'll see where that lands. But I think it's something that, is the next logical step here following the convention. Alyssa, we're just learning now that the final evening of the Democratic National Convention last night drew in 26.2 million voters. What does that tell you? Well, I know Donald Trump was not happy about that, evidenced by the fact that he quickly called in to Fox News and wanted to, you know, bring some ratings and some eyeballs to him. And his message. It's a big deal. I think it speaks to that. 6 in 10 Americans who didn't want the Biden Trump rematch. Now there's someone new, there's someone energizing. There's someone who would be historic if she wins. and I think it was also just, frankly, a well orchestrated convention that was a mixture of different kinds of policies, a mix of national security, having speakers from all over the country. I think it held viewers attention. But, 75 days is a long time. Donald Trump is a master at reclaiming the spotlight and getting eyeballs back on him. He obviously got the RFK Jr endorsement today, which there's some pros to that. And there's some real cons, but this is an incredibly tight race. And I come from the David Axelrod school of thought on this. She should be running two points ahead. Democrats need to be if they think they're going to win. She's right to see yourself as the underdog.