James Carville Says Harris Should Stop Trying To ‘Convince’ Americans ‘That The Economy Is Good’

Democratic strategist James Carville on Thursday suggested that Vice President Kamala Harris stop attempting to persuade voters that the economy is doing well.

Former President Donald Trump holds a 13-point lead over Harris on who voters believe would manage the economy more effectively, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll published on Sept. 19. Carville, on his “Politics War Room” podcast, advised Harris to shift her focus to highlighting the potential dangers of Trump’s economic policies, like tariffs, instead of running on her and President Joe Biden’s economic track record. 

“There’s a way to do this and the way not to — and usually, you have perception economy, and most of the people that we know, and I think with some validity, say, ‘Look, this economy is a lot better than people think it is.’ Alright, that’s frankly not going to work very well because it takes a while for economic perceptions to change,” Carville said. “Trump has given the Harris campaign a great gift. He has, on multiple occasions, said that you have nothing to lose. Alright, that is, whether you have nothing to lose or something to lose is a very, very different conversation as to whether you think the economy is good or bad.”