PORTLAND, Maine — With just weeks until the election, Vice President Kamala Harris is riding a wave of momentum after formally accepting the party nomination this week at the Democratic National Convention.
NEWS CENTER Maine political analyst BJ McCollister, a Democrat, was among the Mainers in attendance at the convention in Chicago.
"One word: electric," McCollister said. "And let me be clear, I'm a Boston Red Sox fan. I spent a lot of time at Fenway. I've been to extra-inning games. I have never been in a room with so much excitement. People are fired up without question."
Harris formally accepted the nomination Thursday night after a week of speeches and star-studded performances. The campaign was a total rebound for democrats after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race following a disastrous debate performance.
"There's no question about it. Kamala Harris has some definite momentum. But I mean, what we're looking at here is we're 11 weeks out from Election Day at this point. There's a lot of time to go," Republican analysts Garrett Mason said. "I mean, if you look at just a month ago, Joe Biden was the was then the nominee, Kamala Harris was the VP nominee. And Donald Trump had just had a bullet fly past his head."
Mason claimed there is still plenty of time for the race to change and applauded the Trump campaign for laying low.
"I think the Trump campaign has done wisely to like let Vice President Harris have her moment," Mason said. "I think now the real policy questions are going to begin."
On the issues that took center stage for Democrats during the DNC, McCollister said top-of-the-list issues included reproductive rights and "protecting democracy."
Mason, on the other hand, was critical of what he considered a lack of focus on policy.
"They haven't even really rolled out any policy positions yet, so it's hard to say what we've actually learned," Mason said. "I know for me, personally, I learned that I remember all of the words to 'Turn Down for What?' by Lil John. I also learned that a British pop star named Charli XCX has declared that Kamala has what every candidate really needs to have, and that is that she is 'brat'—not a brat but 'brat.' So I don't know that we learned very much."
One thing Mason did point to as common ground for the Harris and Trump campaigns was the issue of taxing tipped workers, something he argued Harris stole from Trump.
"I just watched a full week of positions that the campaign has, and what we know is that the vice president is going to fight for American freedoms," McCollister said.
The candidates have become increasingly reactionary to one another's campaigns. Former President Donald Trump was in key swing states this week, like Arizona, where he lashed out at comments from former President Barrack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama, blaming Democrats for making the race "personal."
Mason and McCollister said they both agreed the race has become heated but disagreed on where the animosity comes from.
"Without a question, there is a lot of personal attacks from both sides. But what I would say is, you know, when we think about the Trump campaign, the Trump campaign really can only stick to personal attacks because they don't want to talk about the policy, because the policy is Project 2025," McCollister argued.
Mason claimed Trump "disavowed" Project 2025 and blamed Democrats for "personal attacks" against Trump's running mate J.D. Vance and members of the Trump family. Yet he acknowledged the inevitability of the former president keeping up with some personal jabs at his opponent.
"He's a well-known commodity," Mason said. "He's going to mix the two. And quite frankly, I think it cuts both ways, because it's coming from both sides."
You can watch Political Brew every Sunday on The Weekend Morning Report at 6 a.m. You can also catch it any time on NEWS CENTER Maine+.