Sunny Hostin changes her tune on Kamala Harris after View host’s question ‘cost VP election win’
Sunny Hostin has admitted to asking Kamala Harris a “softball” question during her high-profile spot on The View last month.
In the Oct. 8 interview, Hostin asked Harris how she would be “different” from Joe Biden — setting the stage for a brief response.
“There’s nothing that comes to mind,” the then-presidential candidate replied – after an audible pause.
The moment has lived in infamy ever since, with some — including famed political strategist James Carville — categorizing the exchange as the turning point in the vice president’s campaign.
A point-of-no return, the moment that should have been more or less a free advertisement for Harris, has earned a new round of scrutiny after Donald Trump’s landslide victory — enough so that Hostin, who is a supporter of the vice president had been, finally weighed.
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Sunny Hostin admitted Tuesday to asking Kamala Harris a “softball” question during the vice president’s high-profile spot on The View last month.
In the Oct. 8 interview, Hostin asked Harris how she would be “different” from Joe Biden — paving the way for a brief response
“Oh, wow, I wish I had that much power,” she jokingly told The View producer Brian Teta during the Behind the Table podcast after being asked if her question was the cause of last week’s loss.
“Because I would have turned it the other way around.”
From there, the conversation turned more serious, with the author and attorney explaining why she “followed up” on Harris’ response — which many saw as an opportunity to distance herself from her struggling predecessor.
Instead, the Democrat doubled down, likely putting the proverbial nail in the coffin for her whirlwind campaign.
“I continued because I was surprised by the answer,” Hostin explained.
‘I think it wasn’t so much about the question, but more about the answer
“The reason I moved on was because that wasn’t a gotcha question,” she continued.
“That was actually a layup.”
“The reason I followed up was because that wasn’t a gotcha question,” she told The View producer Brian Teta during the show’s Behind the Table podcast. ‘That was really a lay-up’
Seemingly laughing, Hostin began to explain what she thought might have happened.
“I thought she would say, ‘I would build on the victories we’ve had,’ and I had a laundry list of victories in my head,” the 56-year-old New Yorker recalled.
“And she didn’t answer like that.
“She said, ‘Nothing comes to mind,'” Hostin continued, before commenting on the “loyal”[ty]Harris had shown the president.
The View host stopped short of actually admitting that Harris had given a bad answer, ending by saying, “I just want to say I was surprised by the answer.”
‘It was a question that could really have worked in her favour.
“It was a question that could have been a change maker.”
According to some, the moment proved decisive. Just not in the way showrunners intended.
‘It was a question that could really have worked in her favour. It was a question that could have created change,” Hostin said of her question to Harris on the Oct. 8 episode of The View.
The political pundit who bills himself as the “Ragin Cajun” was among those to take notice, with Carville addressing the topic during an appearance on “The Bulwark Podcast” last week.
“I think if this campaign can be reduced to one moment, we are in a country that is 65% on the wrong track,” he first told host Tim Miller.
‘The country wants something different’
“She asked, as is often the case, to a friendly audience on The View, ‘How would you be different from Biden?’ continued the strategist responsible for Bill Clinton’s victory over then-incumbent George HW Bush.
“That’s the only question you need to answer, okay? That’s it. That is the money question. That’s the one you want.
“That’s the one everyone wants to know the answer to,” he continued, before asking out loud in disbelief, “And you’re freezing?” – insinuating the moment proved fatal.
The Trump team apparently saw it as a mistake too, pointing to the clip in a plethora of ads leading up to the big day.
James Carville, seen here, said Harris failed to answer a simple question when he appeared on The View
Biden stepped aside for Harris after his troubling debate performance in June, and endorsed her soon after. On Tuesday he welcomed Trump back to the White House. Harris was not present
During Harris’ run, Hostin had been an outspoken supporter, as was the case with her fellow panelists
News reports published since then continue to cast the moment as monumental — and CNN publishes a story around it titled “Where Harris’ Campaign Went Wrong.”
Similar pieces from publications such as USA Today and BBC followed, with both painting the exchange as one of the factors that led to Harris’ downfall.
Such suspicions have become commonplace in the past week, as many on-air personalities who had been vocally supportive of Harris now began explaining what happened — and why it happened.
Factors like inflation and policies around the border were blamed — both of which are indelibly linked to Biden’s presidency.
Biden stepped aside for Harris after his troubling debate performance in June, and endorsed her soon after.
On Tuesday he welcomed Trump back to the White House. Harris was not present. During her run, Hostin had been an outspoken advocate, as was the case with the other panelists.