This week, Vice President Kamala Harris sat down for an interview with Fox News host Bret Baier, marking a contentious exchange where Harris continually shifted the conversation to her Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump. However, the interview took an unexpected turn when Baier later admitted to airing the wrong clip of Trump’s remarks during their discussion.
During the interview, Harris accused Trump of making dangerous comments about using the military against Americans, referring to a statement he had made about the “enemy within.”
Baier, seemingly prepared for this critique, played a clip of Trump responding to questions about those remarks, but the clip did not include the specific comments Harris had referenced. This led to a heated exchange between Harris and Baier, with Harris pointing out the discrepancy.
Harris expressed frustration, saying, “That clip was not what he has been saying about the enemy within… He has repeated it multiple times, and you and I both know he has talked about turning the military on the American people.”
The source of confusion stemmed from Trump’s previous interview with Fox News host Maria Bartiromo, where he mentioned dealing with the “enemy within” and suggested that the military or National Guard might be needed to handle certain threats within the country.
Baier intended to play this clip for Harris but mistakenly aired a different segment of Trump responding to Fox host Harris Faulkner during a town hall, in which Trump denied any threats against Americans and complained about the “weaponization of government” against him.
Following the interview, Baier acknowledged his error during the next day’s broadcast, admitting, “I did make a mistake, and I did want to say that I did make a mistake.”
He explained that he had meant to play the segment from Trump’s interview with Bartiromo, where the former president made the original “enemy within” comments, but accidentally aired a different part of Trump’s response from the town hall.
Baier clarified his intent by airing the correct clip during the show, which featured Trump saying, “I think the bigger problem is the enemy from within. Not even the people that have come in and [are] destroying our country… it should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military.”
Baier’s apology came too late to satisfy some viewers, and the error became a point of discussion. Harris’ team did not immediately comment on the mistake, but the Trump campaign was quick to capitalize on the interview’s contentious moments.
Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt described the interview as a “train wreck” for Harris, criticizing her for being “angry, defensive” and avoiding accountability for the challenges facing Americans.
Leavitt also accused Harris of relying on “lies” about Trump and claimed that Harris was unprepared for the pressure of an interview with Fox News.
The interview, which was Harris’ first non-softball exchange as the Democratic nominee, highlighted the ongoing tension between her and Trump, as well as the challenges Harris faces in defending her record and the Biden administration’s policies against tough questioning from conservative media.
While Baier’s admission of a mistake added a layer of complication to the discussion, it also underscored the importance of accuracy in media coverage during such high-stakes political moments.
Ultimately, Baier’s apology did little to quell the firestorm of criticism from the Trump campaign, which remains determined to highlight any missteps by Harris as she continues her vice-presidential campaign.