Kamala Harris Launches Book Tour Amid Speculation of White House Run
BOLDUAN: Is she running or is she running? Right now Democratic Senator Kamala Harris says she is not really running. She is just rolling out a new book. Listen.</s>SEN. KAMALA HARRIS, (D), CALIFORNIA: I think we are at an inflection moment, not only in the history of our country but in the history of our world. There's a lot that is in flux there, there's a lot that is changing. There are a lot of people who rightly feel displaced and are wondering, where do they belong, are they relevant, are they seen, are we thinking about them. I think it is clear to me that what we need in this country is leadership that has a vision in the future in which everyone can see themselves.</s>BOLDUAN: Senator Harris is one of many Democrats taking a serious look at entering the 2020 presidential race. And rolling out a book after making stops in Iowa is doing nothing to tamp down that speculation. Is she running? Here now, CNN national political reporter, Maeve Reston, and CNN Politics editor-at-large, Chris Cillizza. Maeve, is she?</s>MAEVE RESTON, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER: All signs certainly point to yes. My sources in California are telling me that they expect an announcement later this month most likely out on the west coast where she built her political career as a prosecutor and as California's attorney general. And you have seen in these appearances this morning and in this book a real rallying cry against the Trump administration's policies and what she calls a call to action. Her constant refrain both in Iowa and in this book is that we're better than this. Clearly she, feels that it's time for someone who is a more diverse figure in American politics, someone who can lead the country and represent the voiceless. She sort of positioned herself as a champion for the powerless here.</s>BOLDUAN: Chris, so much of the discussion to this point has been do Democrats go for a centrist Democrat? Where does Kamala Harris land?</s>CHRIS CILLIZZA, CNN POLITICS REPORTER & CNN POLITICS EDITOR-AT-LARGE: She is not center left. Out of the broad spectrum of the 30 plus candidates who might run, in exaggeration but really only slightly, she is not as far left totally. On policy she is probably close but not as far left as Bernie Sanders. But neither is she the establishment pragmatist we need to work with Republicans. I think Joe Biden represents to people whether or not he will talk like that. She is certainly closer to the left than center-left. I think she views that probably as a good thing if that is where the nominee can from. The left, there will be a lot of candidates trying to be the most liberal candidate. Biden will occupy the pragmatic center candidate. I don't think anyone else could. And then the in-between there maybe that is where the nominee comes from. I'm with Maeve, I think her tough-on-crime background, the attorney general of California, the first Indiana-American and first African-American woman elected to the Senate in California.</s>BOLDUAN: And that --</s>CILLIZZA: This is a background that looks like the kind of candidate that the Democratic Party is looking for these days.</s>BOLDUAN: She is the only woman of color who is considering a run, Maeve. What does that mean for her on how she positions herself?</s>RESTON: She had this string of historic firsts throughout her career.</s>BOLDUAN: Yes.</s>RESTON: She is obviously the first African-American Senator from California. And this book really lays out kind of how the story of her immigrant parents shaped her thinking, how she approaches the issue of immigration, for example. And what her team hopes and she does have a good strong team around here, is that she will be able to build a coalition of white progressives coming from that background in San Francisco, women and particularly African-Americans, who will be so key in those early state contests, not just in South Carolina where they made up 61 percent of the electorate in the primary, but also in all of those southeastern states that will come very quickly up on the calendar after those early contests. And if she can rack up a series of wins by consolidating the African-American vote which is a tall task, then she really could be in a strong position early in the presidential season.</s>BOLDUAN: First, she has to announce and then raise money. She is from California, which is where a lot of money is for a Democratic candidate. Chris, we were talking about Joe Biden. I spoke with former Virginia governor, Terry McAuliffe, another possible. He told me that his decision to run is separate and independent of Joe Biden's decision to run, if and when he decides. If Biden is the best-known right now, what does Biden's decision to run or not mean for everybody else?</s>CILLIZZA: Well, I mean, I think most people that I talk to -- if you look at every sign out there, most people assume Biden is going to run barring some last-minute change of heart. I think people are saying he starts the race as the front runner. The question is, how much oxygen is there out there if you are not going to try to be the most liberal candidate, and if you don't have the sort of angle that the historic angle that a Kamala Harris will have, where is there oxygen to get somewhere else. If Biden is the traditional candidate, where do you run and fit? That's where Biden matters. It takes up a big chunk of space that other people can't occupy.</s>BOLDUAN: Fascinating. Buckle up, friends. Great to see you, Maeve.</s>RESTON: Thank you.</s>BOLDUAN: Great to see you, Chris. Thanks guys.</s>RESTON: Thank you.</s>BOLDUAN: Coming up for us, the government shutdown must end -- that is a message from the president of the Association of Flight Attendants. Why she says the shutdown is jeopardizing safety and security at airports.