Kamala Harris benefitting from media 'pushing the reset' on campaign coverage, ex-Trump adviser says
Former Deputy communications director for the Trump 2016 campaign, Bryan Lanza, said Sunday that overwhelmingly positive media coverage of Kamala Harris' campaign has raised her popularity despite concerns over inflation and other issues.
"We want to survive the enthusiasm," Lanza said of the Republican Party and former President Trump's campaign in the weeks that have passed since the vice president succeeded President Biden as her party's nominee.
"You‘ve never seen this much media coverage — somebody in politics getting nearly five weeks of positive media coverage," Lanza said of Harris. "I will point out, remember at the start of this, Kamala Harris was the most unpopular VP in American history."
"And all she did [since] that time is make 1,800 phone calls to [Democratic Party] insiders to get the nomination and that‘s what changed it?" he asked. "No, it's the media sort of pushing the reset."
Harris has largely evaded formal press conferences and sit-down interviews with the media in recent weeks. Some liberal media figures, like CNN host Fareed Zakaria, have praised her campaign style, calling it "disciplined" and "remarkably focused," especially since she announced her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
But Lanza said that even with media support for Harris' campaign, key voter issues like inflation and immigration still threaten the vice president's popularity.
"So from our standpoint, we know the media coverage is going to be excessive, positive, saying all these great things," he said. "Although when you look at inflation, life's not that great, when you look at immigration, life's not that great. But we need to survive the media push. And I think we will."
The Harris campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Fox News' Michael Lee contributed to this report.