Former President Trump's running mate, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, told donors that running against Vice President Kamala Harris presents a "unique opportunity" but acknowledged her relative youth and lower profile when compared to President Biden offer the campaign challenges as well.
"We have a very unique opportunity, but also a very unique challenge, because, let’s be honest, 10 days ago, the two candidates who were running for president, everybody had an opinion about ’em. Love ’em or hate ’em, everybody has an opinion about Donald Trump and Joe Biden after the past eight years," Vance privately told donors in Minnesota of Biden’s decision to drop out of the race and endorse Harris, according to a recording of the Ohio senator’s remarks obtained by the Washington Post. "But Kamala Harris, people don’t really know."
The remarks come as the Trump campaign continues to adjust to the new reality of the race, pivoting from running against a candidate whose age and mental acuity were among the top concerns of voters to highlighting Harris' role in an administration that remains unpopular with Americans.
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Vance told donors that the campaign would have to attack Harris’ previous positions, including her opposition to fracking, praising the "defund the police" movement, and her record on the border, the report notes.
The message echoed a similar sentiment Vance expressed to reporters the day after Biden’s decision, when the Ohio senator cited Harris’ role in the administration as being a weak spot for the vice president, most notably when it comes to issues such as border security.
"I don’t think the political calculus changes at all," Vance said. "We were running against Joe Biden’s open border, Kamala Harris’s open border. Kamala Harris supported the green new scam. Kamala Harris, frankly, covered Joe Biden even though it was obvious he was mentally incompetent for a very long time."
However, Vance admitted to donors that running against Harris also presents a new challenge for the campaign, noting that she does not come with some of the "baggage" Biden had on the trail.
"All of us were hit with a little bit of a political sucker punch," Vance. "The bad news is that Kamala Harris does not have the same baggage as Joe Biden, because whatever we might have to say, Kamala is a lot younger. And Kamala Harris is obviously not struggling in the same ways that Joe Biden did."
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Nevertheless, the campaign has continued to express confidence in running against the vice president, who Trump has argued is worse than Biden.
"Lyin’ Kamala Harris, the Biden appointed ‘Border Czar’ who never visited the Border, and whose incompetence gave us the WORST and MOST DANGEROUS Border anywhere in the World, has absolutely terrible pole [sic] numbers against a fine and brilliant young man named DONALD J. TRUMP! Be careful what you wish for, Democrats," Trump posted on Truth Social in reaction to the news that Biden was dropping out of the race last week.
Trump adviser Jason Miller struck a similar tone in an interview with Fox News the day after Biden’s announcement, arguing that "Democrats are a bit of jumping out of the frying pan into the fire."
"And they may have gotten rid of one problem with Joe Biden, but they’ve inherited a whole new problem with Kamala Harris," Miller said.
When reached for comment by Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Vance argued that the campaign is excited to take on Harris, a candidate who polls have long showed is not popular with voters.
"Poll after poll shows President Trump leading Kamala Harris as voters become aware of her weak, failed, and dangerously liberal agenda," the spokesperson, William Martin, said Tuesday. "Her far-left ideas are even more radioactive than Joe Biden, particularly in the key swing states that will decide this election like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin."
Meanwhile, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung told Fox News Digital that Harris is a "weak" candidate.
"Democrats are in complete disarray after their coup that forcibly removed Biden from the campaign, proving they are the real threats to democracy," Cheung said Tuesday. "The fact remains that Kamala Harris is weak, failed, and dangerously liberal, and no amount of gaslighting from her or her campaign will erase her despicable record."
Polls have shown a tighter race for Trump against Harris in the week since Biden’s decision to drop out, with the Real Clear Politics polling average showing Trump with a 3.1 point lead over Biden nationally but just a 1.7 lead over Harris.
Harris has also gained significant ground on Trump in presidential betting markets, with Trump having a 55% chance to win the election and Harris having a 39% chance, according to the Real Clear Politics betting odds average.
While Trump maintains a 16-point gap, Trump enjoyed an almost 43-point gap between himself and Harris on July 20, the day before Biden dropped out of the election, and a nearly 52-point lead over Biden.
However, Martin argued that Trump will have a wide advantage once voters become more familiar with Harris' policies.
"Her far-left ideas are even more radioactive than Joe Biden, particularly in the key swing states that will decide this election like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin," Martin said.
The Harris campaign did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
