Political commentator Chris Cillizza, who worked for CNN from 2017 to 2022 before joining NewsNation as a contributor in March 2025, responded to former Vice President Kamala Harris announcing that she has decided not to run for California governor in the 2026 election.
Cillizza wrote of the 2024 Democratic Party presidential nominee on his Substack: “I think Kamala Harris made a BIG mistake in deciding not to run for governor in 2026. Because I think that she thinks she is running for president in 2028. But here’s the thing: Kamala Harris was not and is not a particularly gifted candidate.”
Jaime Harrison, who was Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) during Harris’s run for president in 2024, replied to Cillizza: “Seriously dude?!” He added, “My recipient for this week’s Sit Your [Expletive] Down Award!”
I think Kamala Harris made a BIG mistake in deciding not to run for governor in 2026.
— Chris Cillizza (@ChrisCillizza) July 31, 2025
Because I think that she thinks she is running for president in 2028.
But here's the thing: Kamala Harris was not and is not a particularly gifted candidate.
She has always been overly… pic.twitter.com/pVhXgkqaVF
NOTE: Harris will defend her choices in the campaign and reiterate the extraordinary circumstance in a new book called 107 Days, to be published by Simon & Schuster in September. Below is the synopsis.
Your Secret Service code name is Pioneer.
You are the first woman in history to be elected vice president of the United States.
On July 21, 2024, your running mate, Joe Biden, announces that he will not be seeking reelection.
The presidential election will occur on November 5, 2024.
You have 107 days.
Grant Stern, Executive Director of OccupyDemocrats, also had choice words for Cillizza. He replied to Harrison: “It’s a big compliment to Kamala from Cilizza [sic], because he’s literally always wrong.”
Chris D. Jackson, former member of the 2020 Democratic National Committee’s Platform Committee and election commissioner for Lawrence County, Tennessee, also replied to Harrison: “I’ll never understand how this guy has a job as a political commentator. No one has been more consistently wrong over the years than he has. Who the hell pays to read this?”
Cillizza, who celebrated his 100,000 subscriber milestone on his YouTube channel on July 15, did reply to Harrison’s “sit down” comment by writing the insult, “Well you DID handle the DNC so expertly…..wait.”
Median Politics also replied to Cillizza’s prediction by writing: “She could have a wonderful life while not being involved in politics. Maybe that’s her plan.”
I’m so grateful for the leadership and friendship of our MVP @KamalaHarris !!! Looking forward to getting back on the trail with you to help Democrats in the midterms! https://t.co/UTk5DvrlW6
— Jaime Harrison (@harrisonjaime) July 30, 2025
As seen above, Harrison also shared Harris’s official announcement on social media, and wrote: “I’m so grateful for the leadership and friendship of our MVP @KamalaHarris!!! Looking forward to getting back on the trail with you to help Democrats in the midterms!”
Many MAGA supporters are responding by encouraging Harrison to “keep her talking,” implying that Harris’s campaign efforts won’t help Democrats win seats in the midterms.
Former GOP strategist Kristopher J. Anderson was among many replying to Harrison with another reason Harris may have opted out of a gubernatorial run, speculating that “she knew she would lose.”
[NOTE: The Harris-as-a bad-candidate narrative is so common that Jonathan V. Last of the Bulwark recently wrote an article defending her against attacks from Democrats. When Harris “couldn’t pull a miracle out of a flaming dumpster,” Last wrote, the dissatisfied Dems “Monday morning quarterback[ed] her entire campaign. ‘She moved too far to the right.’ ‘She shouldn’t have stood next to Liz Cheney.’ ‘She should’ve gone full AOC.’]
