Becerra Crumbling Under Pressure: ‘No Tough Questions’ Edition
Terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day for Becerra as he continues to be scrutinized for requesting softball questions in an interview, drawing attention nationwide
“Becerra rarely was the administration's point person in communicating to the American people on the pandemic. This may be the reason why,” posted David Axelrod
SAN FRANCISCO — It’s been a banner 24 hours for Xavier Becerra as he continues to show weakness in the face of tough questions about his ties to corruption and his responsibility for 85,000 migrant children lost under his watch. And now he’s facing criticism from experts and state and national reporters for asking for special treatment from the press.
No wonder he’s back in hiding.
Becerra’s interview with KTLA’s Annie Rose Ramos this morning offered California voters a closer look as to how Becerra flails under pressure. Becerra repeatedly pushed back on basic questions about his record, asking if the interview was going to be a “gotcha piece” and insisting the focus stay on softball questions instead of “tough questions.”
When pressed on his responsibility for the migrant children crisis, he dismissed the questions as “Donald Trump talking points” — even after being told the information came from a New York Times report.
Here’s what others have to say about Becerra’s incompetence:
Jeanne Kuang: “There's no "gotcha" questions when you run for office. You allow your life and record to be scrutinized when you do that. How can it even be a "gotcha" when one sits for an interview? You're literally being given the chance to answer the questions”
Max Tani: “if you can't handle local tv, how are you going to be able to handle national media, much of which has an interest in pushing/pursuing narratives about how terrible you/your state are?”
David Axelrod: “As HHS Secy during COVID, Becerra rarely was the administration's point person in communicating to the American people on the pandemic. This may be the reason why.”
Jonathan Allen: “This is not surprising to anyone who has ever covered Becerra. He once held up his fingers in the sign of the cross to ward me off, as though I were a vampire, after a piece accurately describing his effort to undermine Pelosi with the Prog Caucus over ACA public option.”
Tommy Vietor: “Politicians and candidates…let your staff have these whiny conversations! Or at least don’t do it on camera!”
Tim Miller: “On the other hand this is cringe-inducingly bad from Becerra”
Jon Ralston: “I have seen and done a lot of TV interviews and this is one of the most pathetic things I have ever seen.”
Cenk Uygur: “This is why standard politicians are unbearable. Look at that entitlement complex! Establishment Democrats (and Republicans) expect the media to kiss their ass. To be fair to them, that is usually how it goes. Becerra isn’t going to do anything positive for CA with this attitude.”
David Sirota: “a good example of how a lot of career politicians genuinely believe journalists exist to serve them rather than to scrutinize them”
And in the press:
New York Magazine –Becerra Tries to Ensure Interviewer Won’t Be Mean to Him
Nia Prater: ‘With the June primary quickly approaching, Becerra likely has very little room for error in order to maintain his recently achieved lead. In another sign that he faces some resistance from fellow Democrats, former Homeland Security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who served alongside Becerra in Joe Biden’s cabinet, declined to offer him an endorsement.”
SF Chronicle – California Democrats are about to make a big mistake with Xavier Becerra
Jack Ohman: “The California Democrats who have settled on Becerra as their candidate for governor because they think he has enough governmental experience to endure what promises to be a brutal general election campaign may be right. But what I witnessed felt more like a giant red flag.”
“[Xavier Becerra] comes in, he gives this really lame-ass opening that was almost patronizing.. like we're idiots… these are real concerns. They deserve real answers. He's not giving real answers. I don't think he can get away with that in the long term. Frankly, I am surprised that he's gotten away with it this long. These canned answers, the same line over and over again, the media has to stop accepting and dig deeper…. I think it's especially dangerous to not really push on those questions now in the primary and wait for those answers to come out in the general.”
The Hill – Becerra presses TV reporter: ‘This is not a gotcha piece, right?’
“Becerra also received criticism for his knowledge of former Rep. Eric Swalwell’s alleged sexual misconduct during a gubernatorial debate on News Nation.”
###