Trump has yet to taunt Kamala Harris. Chris Christie implies that's because he's 'afraid' of her.
President Trump has already begun targeting several of the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates with insults — but Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) has remained a surprising exception.
Trump has already mocked Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) for announcing her presidential run in the middle of a blizzard, and he's continued to hammer on the controversy surrounding Sen. Elizabeth Warren's (D-Mass.) claimed Native American heritage. But the president has said very little about Harris aside from an official White House tweet over the summer claiming that the senator was "supporting" MS-13 gang members. In fact, more recently he's even paid Harris what might be considered a compliment.
"I would say the best opening so far would be Kamala Harris," Trump said in an interview with The New York Times, responding to a question about which Democratic candidate might be the toughest challenger in 2020. "Better crowd, better enthusiasm. Some of the others were very flat."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Trump has also so far refrained from bestowing upon Harris one of his signature nicknames. The president's scathing monikers — "Crooked" Hillary Clinton, "'Cryin'" Chuck Schumer, and Warren's "Pocahontas" frequently appear on his Twitter feed. On the last campaign trail, he belittled other Republican nominees as well, dubbing Sen. Marco Rubio "Little Marco" and Jeb Bush "Low Energy Jeb."
Nothing for Harris, though. As former New Jersey governor Chris Christie recently explained, "If he respects you, you don't get a nickname, because he's afraid what's going to come back", before pointing out that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) similarly has no epithet. For now, at least, it seems that Harris is in that same league.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
'The House GOP is begging to lose their majority'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Pig kidney transplant recipient dies
Speed Read Richard Slayman has passed away two months after undergoing the historic procedure
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Putin replaces defense minister with economist
Speed Read In a surprising shake-up, Putin replaced Sergei Shoigu with civilian economist Andrei Belousov
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Ukraine cheers House approval of military aid
Speed Read Following a lengthy struggle, the House has approved $95 billion in aid for Ukraine and Israel
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Poland, Germany nab alleged anti-Ukraine spies
Speed Read A man was arrested over a supposed Russian plot to kill Ukrainian President Zelenskyy
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Israel hits Iran with retaliatory airstrike
Speed Read The attack comes after Iran's drone and missile barrage last weekend
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Peter Murrell: Sturgeon's husband charged over SNP 'embezzlement' claims
Speed Read SNP expresses 'shock' as former chief executive rearrested in long-running investigation into claims of mishandled campaign funds
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Mark Menzies: Tories investigate MP after 'bad people' cash claims
Speed Read Fylde MP will sit as an independent while party looks into allegations he misused campaign funds on medical expenses and blackmail pay-out
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Why Johnson won't just pass Ukraine aid
Speed Read The House Speaker could have sent $60 billion in military aid to Ukraine — but it would have split his caucus
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Sudan on brink of collapse after a year of war
Speed Read 18 million people face famine as the country continues its bloody downward spiral
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump's first criminal trial starts with jury picks
Speed Read The former president faces charges related to hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published