The Morning Briefing: Will Kamala Harris Be the First Big Name Off the Board?

The Smell of Burning Toast…

By any measure, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) hasn’t done well in the spotlight she thrust herself into after the first round of debates, when she sparred with Vice President Joe Biden (D-Del.) and made the frontrunner appear vulnerable.

The seemingly overwhelming momentum Harris had just two and a half months ago is now a more distant memory than any recollection of what Joe Biden’s original face looked like.

Mired in fourth place behind Der Bidengaffer and two white septuagenarian socialists, Harris hasn’t been able to play her diversity card effectively enough to break free from the midpack.

Normally, that wouldn’t be much of a concern this early in the primary process, especially with a field this large. Given the momentum she had in late June and early July, however, her inertia in the polls feels more like backsliding.

Now, it appears that the Harris campaign is turning to what is generally considered a desperation play: putting all of her eggs in the Iowa basket.

Politico:

Kamala Harris is putting her stumbling campaign on the line with a new Iowa-or-bust strategy: She’s shifting away from the closed-door fundraisers that dominated her summer calendar to focus on retail politicking in the crucial kickoff state.

Harris huddled with top campaign officials Tuesday in Baltimore to discuss the next steps as a series of polls show her plummeting into the mid-single digits. She’s not expected to significantly alter her message. Instead, Harris is planning to make weekly visits to the state and nearly double the size of her 65-person ground operation, sources familiar with the discussions told POLITICO.

Retail politicking sells in Iowa perhaps even better than it does in other states. For that reason alone, this is a good strategy for Harris. If, however, she underperforms after diverting her resources there, it could be an almost fatal blow to the campaign.

Harris has her work in Iowa cut out for her:

An Iowa poll out Wednesday, conducted by her own pollster for another client, showed Harris well out of range of the frontrunners, Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren, and behind Bernie Sanders, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar.

Yeah, she’s trailing Amy Klobuchar, who is currently polling around two percent nationally. And that’s from her pollster.

She can probably hang around until Super Tuesday, but limping into it may not do her any good.

As for now, the Party of Youth and Diversity looks older and whiter at the top every day.

Cancel Halloween

'Sexy Mr. Rogers' costume drops just in time for Halloween 2019 https://t.co/PzZz193PRj pic.twitter.com/T1ancN6zH8

— New York Post (@nypost) September 18, 2019

PJM Linktank

I’m running out of shocked faces: Weird Coincidence: Airline Mechanic Accused of Sabotaging Plane Had ISIS Video on His Phone

From the Mothership and Beyond

Ilhan Omar: When Will Twitter Take Action Against Trump For Smearing Me?

Liberals are the worst at costumes: Time: Justin Trudeau Wore ‘Brownface’ To A Private School Party In 2001

FLORIDA WOMAN: Naked inmate bum-rushes guard at the Manatee County Jail

Homeowner Defends Themselves Against Three Mask-Wearing Teens

Regnery Publishing dunks on the new Brett Kavanaugh book by those New York Times reporters

Rep. Meadows: Comey’s Congressional Testimony At Odds With What He Told IG Horowitz, New Referral Needed

Bee Me

A double-whammy from the Bee today, because they both pertain to Tuesday’s Briefing.

After Hours-Long Search Through Old Tweets And Podcasts, Activist Successfully Offendedhttps://t.co/gJg2LT4h6K

— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) September 18, 2019

SNL Fires Comedian Accused Of Telling Funny Jokehttps://t.co/F6wyU9ClSn

— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) September 18, 2019

The Kruiser Kabana

Because Health.

A beer a day could keep your diabetes at bay: Scientific review finds drinking alcohol in moderation can ‘improve glucose metabolism’

Not gonna lie…kinda feeling like my entire childhood was a waste because I never got to do this as a boy.

https://twitter.com/BestVideosviral/status/1173978651634872322

I hope the camps have Netflix.

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PJ Media Associate Editor Stephen Kruiser is the author of “Don’t Let the Hippies Shower” and “Straight Outta Feelings: Political Zen in the Age of Outrage,” both of which address serious subjects in a humorous way. Monday through Friday he edits PJ Media’s “Morning Briefing.”