Overview of The Bulwark Podcast — Kamala Harris: This Is Our Country
Tim Miller interviews former Vice President Kamala Harris at a sold-out Ryman Auditorium stop on her book tour for 107 Days. The conversation mixes campaign retrospection (the final 107 days before the 2024 election), Harris’s time as vice president, and a broader policy and political agenda — including foreign policy critiques of the Trump administration, critiques of disinformation/AI, Democratic priorities (healthcare, childcare, housing), and organizing strategy in the South. The tone is candid, emotional, and combative at times, but closes on a hopeful, mobilizing note.
Main takeaways
- 107 Days is Harris’s effort to put her first-person voice into the historical record about the short, chaotic presidential campaign after she became the Democratic nominee.
- Harris says the campaign and election loss were deeply painful; she describes grieving and processing the result as she did her constitutional duty to certify the election.
- She strongly criticized the Trump administration over its handling of foreign policy (notably the MBS/Khashoggi matter), perceived corruption, and politicization/weaponization of the Department of Justice.
- Her policy priorities for Democrats: affordable healthcare, childcare and paid family supports, protections against corporate price-gouging/greedy landlords, and dignity for working people — framed as fighting “for something,” not just resisting.
- Disinformation and AI are existential challenges; Harris believes consumer pressure (parents, citizens) and new norms will be more effective than congressional slow-moving fixes.
- Organizing in the South and engaging Gen Z and local activists are central to Democratic recovery and future success.
Topics discussed (high-level)
Campaign & book (107 Days)
- Purpose: to record her perspective on the campaign and ensure her voice is part of the historical account.
- Constraints: Harris describes being constrained by her role as vice president (loyalty to the president, confidentiality of VP–president private conversations) which limited how aggressively she could distinguish herself during the campaign.
- Emotions: she recounts grief at the election result and the prolonged process of processing anger, sadness, and determination.
Presidential conduct, foreign policy, and accountability
- Strong condemnation of President Trump’s response to the Khashoggi murder and his broader tendency to bypass or ignore U.S. intelligence for personal gain.
- Calls for transparency and release of documents (e.g., Epstein files), and a defense of DOJ independence — while arguing Democrats must still fight hard ethically.
Disinformation, AI, and trust
- Major concern: Americans do not operate with the same information; social media-driven disinformation fractures civic discourse.
- Skepticism that Congress can legislate quickly enough; sees consumer/parent-led pressure and market forces as important levers for change.
- Argues for guardrails that protect children and consumers while allowing beneficial uses of AI (e.g., speeding permitting to ease housing supply).
Democratic Party priorities and strategy
- Core issues: affordable healthcare, childcare, paid family leave, extension of child tax credits, fighting corporate power and rent gouging, and ensuring working-class Americans can “get ahead.”
- On intra-party debates: the party has room for different views; she emphasizes the party’s record and the need to emphasize tangible benefits that affect daily life.
- Organizing strategy: invest in Southern organizing, engage Gen Z, meet people where they are, and listen.
Immigration and civil liberties
- Denounces aggressive ICE/immigration enforcement tactics that terrify immigrant communities and disrupt schooling, worship, and civic life.
- Reasserts the immigrant roots of most Americans as a unifying point.
Notable quotes and memorable lines
- “We are not fighting against; we are fighting for something.”
- “Release the files.” (calling on the president to release Epstein-related documents)
- “It is not only crazy, it is corrupt, it is callous, and incompetent all at the same time.” (on the administration siding with foreign autocrats over U.S. intelligence/press)
- “We cannot normalize a thing we are seeing right now.”
- “This is our country. We will take our power. We're not letting anyone take our power from us.”
Audience questions — summarized responses
- Organizing in the South: Harris urged persistent, local organizing, listening across generations, and highlighted the South as a place of national impact. Emphasized mobilizing Gen Z and community listening.
- Government efficiency vs. reinvention: She argued against nostalgia and for honest reform — speed, reduced bureaucracy (e.g., faster permitting), and using technology responsibly to leapfrog inefficiencies.
- Humanitarian sector layoffs / hope for workers: Harris praised nonprofit/humanitarian workers, urged civic and volunteer support, and said Americans should not give up — “this is our country” and the public can step in to help directly.
Action items / practical recommendations included
- For Democrats & organizers:
- Center affordability (healthcare, childcare, housing) in messaging and prioritization.
- Invest in Southern organizing and young-voter outreach (Gen Z).
- Make the contrast with Republicans about concrete economic outcomes (SNAP, child supports, health premiums).
- For citizens/consumers:
- Use consumer pressure and grassroots organizing (boycotts, parental demands) to push tech/platform change and safety standards.
- Volunteer for local nonprofits, humanitarian organizations, or community groups to fill gaps created by federal retrenchment.
- For policymakers & advocates:
- Prioritize non-legislative moves and market/consumer-driven solutions where Congress is too slow; pursue regulation where possible but expect friction.
Book notes and context
- 107 Days focuses on the final phase of Harris’s presidential run after being selected as the nominee with a short campaign window; she wrote it to provide her account of the inner workings and choices of that campaign period.
- The interview gives personal anecdotes (wildfire evacuation from her California home during the campaign; prior January 6 experiences) to illustrate the pressures she faced.
Tone, setting, and takeaway
- Setting: Ryman Auditorium, Nashville — crowd of ~2,000, engaged and vocal.
- Tone: candid, sometimes fiery and emotional, but ultimately mobilizing and hopeful.
- Bottom line: Harris blends personal reflection about campaign constraints and grief with a clear policy agenda and a call to action — emphasizing that Democrats should focus on concrete economic and family-oriented priorities, battle disinformation and AI harms, and lean into grassroots organizing (especially in the South and among young voters). She insists that civic engagement and consumer power are central levers to defend democratic norms and effect change.