On November 1, 2024, 4 days before the elections, CNN ran a story concerning Kamala Harris’ election campaign. The story entitled “Hear the different messaging on Israel and Gaza from the Harris campaign commercials depending on where you live” (CNN). The New York Post, Fox News and the Times of India ran stories referring to the CNN one the following day.
What kind of campaign is run this way? Granted most people don’t travel enough during the time period campaign ads are running or pay attention to the details per se. Why did CNN pick up the story? Who advised the Harris campaign?
According to Ballotopedia the staff consisted of
- Julie Chavez Rodriquez – Campaign Manager
- Jennifer O’Malley Dillon – Campaign Chairwoman
- Quentin Fulks – Principal Deputy Campaign Manager
- David Plouffe – Senior Advisor
- Becca Siegel – Senior Advisor
- Gene Sperling – Senior Economic Advisor
- Michael Tyler – Communications Director
- Ian Sams – Senior Spokesperson
- Mia Ehrenberg – National Spokesperson
- Sharles Lutvak – National Spokesperson
- Kevin Munoz – Media Relations
- Roohi Rustum – National Organizing Director
All of these people were part of Joe Biden’s staff and migrated to assist Harris after he pulled out of the race with the exception of David Plouffe.
David Plouffe is a political strategist best known for heading Barack Obama’s successful 2008 bid for president against Senator John McCain. He was later appointed as Senior Advisor to the President. He is considered a solid liberal. Plouffe must have known about the ads; wouldn’t he have advised against it? Is it possible that a man with his experience could have made a strategic error of this magnitude?
In 2013 Plouffe was a contributor to ABC News and Bloomberg TV. In 2015 Plouffe became a strategic advisor to Uber. He is not without controversy.
In September 2015, Plouffe reportedly played a key role in convincing Vice President Joe Biden not to challenge Clinton, telling Biden “not to end his career in embarrassment with a third place finish in Iowa”, according to multiple accounts of the meeting Wikipedia
Plouffe has drawn criticism for his paid speaking engagements abroad while on hiatus from advising Obama. In early 2009, Plouffe spoke in Baku, Azerbaijan, for $50,000. The event’s sponsor had ties to Azerbaijan’s authoritarian government. Following complaints from human rights groups, Plouffe donated his speaking fees to the National Democratic Institute – Wikipedia
In December 2010, Plouffe received $100,000 for two speeches in Nigeria from an affiliate of the South African telecommunications company MTN Group. At the time, MTN had been doing business with the government of Iran since 2005. MTN later came under increased scrutiny by the United States due to allegations that the Iranian government used the MTN network to track and monitor dissidents. MTN has been listed on the “Iran Business Registry” of watchdog group United Against Nuclear Iran since 2009 – Wikipedia
In February 2017, Plouffe was fined $90,000 by the Chicago Board of Ethics for the violation of ethics rules when he failed to register as a lobbyist after contacting Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to help Uber with regulations for picking up travelers at Chicago airports. – Wikipedia