Podcast Summary: The Opinions – "What a Book of Excuses Reveals About the Democrats’ Future"
Host: Michelle Cottle (A)
Guests: Lydia Polgreen (B), Carlos Lozada (C)
Date: September 27, 2025
Overview
This episode delves into Kamala Harris’s new memoir, 107 Days, a book reflecting on her failed presidential campaign. With Jamel and David away, Michelle Cottle is joined by columnists Lydia Polgreen and Carlos Lozada for a wide-ranging discussion. They dissect Harris’s narrative, scrutinize her explanations for defeat, and draw larger implications for the Democratic Party’s future.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
First Impressions: One-Word Reviews
- Carlos: "Excuse" ([01:49])
- Sees the book as “the excuse that she gives” for why she lost, with the 107-day campaign timeline as the centerpiece.
- Lydia: "Lawyerly" ([02:24])
- Describes the book as akin to a legal brief: “not a document for a jury of American citizens aimed at persuasion, but a kind of, I don't know, almost insider account of her argument for herself.”
- Michelle: "Defensive" or “whiny” ([03:41])
- Felt Harris’s tone was “just a little whiny…well, I only had 107 days and all these people didn't trust me…”
Is 107 Days a Valid Excuse?
- Carlos ([04:59]):
- Raises a counterfactual: Would more time have mattered, or did the compressed schedule actually aid Harris’s path to the nomination?
- Suggests, “It feels a bit rich to complain about the short time frame…while relying on the short time frame to secure the nomination in the first place.”
- Lydia ([07:00]):
- Notes Harris had initial momentum: “polling, fundraising, all of that right at the beginning…there was a lot of electricity…and it all just kind of frittered away.”
- Observes Harris doesn’t directly blame Joe Biden for her predicament, only obliquely references him.
Memoir Genre – Fish Nor Fowl
- Carlos ([09:15]):
- Places Harris’s book in between two traditional political memoir types: the cautious “I'm still going places” kind, and the “burn-it-all-down, I’m done” variety.
- Judges Harris’s as stuck in the middle: “She does just enough to kind of annoy some people…and potential future allies, but not enough to really feel like she's telling us everything.”
- On Gaza, Harris remains non-committal: “She speaks very generically…she doesn’t say why [about not giving a Palestinian speaker a slot at the convention].”
Substance and Vision: Small Ball Policies, No Blueprint
- Lydia ([11:52]–[13:58]):
- Critiques Harris’s “very kind of big picture, high flown rhetoric…without any ton of specificity matched with…some really kind of small bore policy proposals.”
- Quotes classic advice: “Campaign in poetry and govern in prose,” but laments Harris “campaigns in policy papers.”
- Michelle/Carlos ([14:23]–[17:10]):
- Identify the book as backward-looking, lacking vision for the party’s future.
- Carlos notes: “She says flat out…we need to come up with our own blueprint…Well, yeah, but you…had four years as vice president.”
Democratic Party’s Identity Crisis & The Need for Primary Competition
- Lydia ([17:23], [18:04]):
- Argues for “big, brawling, knockdown primaries” to foster real debate and define new ideas: “Maybe the way to save democracy is by, like, doing democracy.”
- Warns Harris was structurally barred from a meaningful primary, as there was “no time for a mini primary.”
- Carlos ([20:04]):
- Reminds listeners that the last true Democratic contest was 2008: “The last one where that was really truly the case produced Barack Obama.”
- Michelle ([21:06]):
- Encourages listeners to watch governor’s and Senate races, not just the presidency: “Please pay attention to something other than the presidential level so that you know what’s at stake.”
Potential 2028 Nominees & Harris’s Future
- Lydia ([22:02]):
- Sees opportunity if the 2028 nominee is “someone who we are not even talking about right now.”
- Michelle ([23:22]):
- Suggests Democratic leadership’s failure to listen to voters—particularly about Biden—is what “doomed Kamala.”
- Carlos ([27:04]):
- Puts odds against Harris in 2028: “Anyone who thinks they should be president…usually doesn't stop thinking they should be president…but I…would take the field over Kamala Harris.”
- Lydia ([27:36]):
- Says Harris’s best bet would have been a “scorcher” of a book: honest, critical, self-reflective. Instead, Harris remains “kind of bog standard politician.”
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- Carlos ([01:49]): "This is not just an explanation for why Harris thinks she lost. I think it's the excuse that she gives."
- Lydia ([02:29]): "It was not a document for a jury of American citizens aimed at persuasion, but a kind of, I don't know, almost insider account of her argument for herself."
- Michelle ([03:41]): "It's just a little whiny, which is along the lines of defense or defensive."
- Lydia ([07:00]): "She actually got a huge boost…at the beginning…there was a lot of electricity…and it all just kind of frittered away."
- Carlos ([09:22]): "There are two main kinds of Washington memoirs…Harris’s memoir is weird because it's kind of stuck between the two…neither fish nor foul. In Peru, he would say it's not chicha, it's not lemonade."
- Lydia ([13:48]): "[Saying you'll only] propose things that are possible…that just felt like you're basically limiting yourself to begin with."
- Carlos ([15:25]): "Only Trump can get away with concepts of a plan."
- Lydia ([18:04]): "The solution to this problem…is actually to have a competition about ideas…big, brawling, knockdown primaries."
- Carlos ([20:04]): "2020, it's not that Joe Biden emerged out of the, you know, the froth of a battle of ideas…he was anointed quickly…you have to go back to 2016…"
- Lydia ([22:02]): “The most exciting possibility to me is that the Democratic nominee in 2028 is someone who we are not even talking about right now.”
- Carlos ([27:04]): "Anyone who thinks they should be president…usually doesn't stop…But…I'd take the field over Kamala Harris."
- Lydia ([27:36]): "I think her best bet would have been to write [a] searingly honest, burn it all down [book]…But…I think this book reveals that…she's…kind of bog standard politician."
Timestamps for Key Segments
- 00:34 — Show intro and guest introductions.
- 01:46 — One-word reactions to Harris’s memoir.
- 03:41 — Host’s critical first impression.
- 04:59 — Is “107 Days” a fair excuse? Carlos’s thought experiment.
- 07:00 — Lydia on Harris’s missed chance for momentum.
- 09:15 — Carlos on memoir genre and Harris’s “fish nor fowl” approach.
- 11:52 — Policy issues: substance or missed opportunity?
- 13:48 — “Campaign in poetry and govern in prose?”
- 14:57 — Does Harris or the Democrats have a future vision?
- 17:10 — The absence of a “blueprint” and leadership.
- 18:04 — Need for open, competitive Democratic primaries.
- 20:04 — Historical lack of meaningful intra-party competition.
- 22:02 — 2028: Need for new faces and ideas.
- 27:04 — Kamala Harris’s odds and the “field” for 2028.
- 27:36 — Lydia on the book’s possible alternative and Harris’s limitations.
Recommendations Segment
- Lydia ([30:55]): The Skies Belong to Us by Brendan Koerner – A colorful account of skyjacking and political atmosphere of the 1960s and 70s.
- Carlos ([32:13]): Reads Clive James’s poem "The Book of My Enemy Has Been Remaindered," drawing a parallel with the fate of Harris’s memoir.
- Michelle ([34:07]): Recommends Netflix’s The Residents, a political murder mystery produced by Shondaland.
Tone & Style Observations
The exchange remains pointed—often sharply critical of Harris’s narrative and style—but is marked by dry wit and camaraderie. The panelists challenge each other but embrace nuance and ambiguity. They balance critique with a tone of weary affection for their subject matter and the political process.
Conclusion
The panel’s deep dive into Kamala Harris’s 107 Days finds it less an illuminating act of political honesty and more an insider’s rationalization—one less likely to help Harris’s future prospects than to leave space for new voices in the Democratic Party. The discussion closes on a hopeful note: healthy competition and bold new ideas are the necessary path for Democrats moving forward.