Rantz: Vulnerable Democrat Marie Glusenkamp Perez runs away from embracing Kamala Harris

Vulnerable House Democrat Marie Glusenkamp Perez won’t endorse Kamala Harris for president. And she stayed silent when asked about the vice president’s job as “border czar.” It may better indicate the momentum left-wing media said is on Harris’ side is completely contrived.

Glusenkamp Perez is a progressive Democrat representing WA-03, a red district encompassing the southernmost portion of Western Washington. She was elected after an unusually bloody fight between Republican incumbent Jamie Herrera Butler and newcomer Joe Kent. After the infighting, Kent advanced but did not have much time to heal the movement ahead of the general. Now he’s back, alongside conservative Leslie LeWallen, to turn the district red again.

Sensing the district, like much of the country, soured on Biden/Harris, Glusenkamp Perez is refusing to endorse the would-be Democratic nominee because she’s trying to be perceived as a moderate. 

More from Jason Rantz: Is Kamala Harris vetting Washington Governor Jay Inslee for vice president?

Why won’t Marie Glusenkamp Perez endorse Kamala Harris for president?

Fox News attempted to ask Glusenkamp Perez where she stood on Harris, including how she performed as “border czar,” since a record number of illegal immigrants crossed the border under Biden/Harris. But the congresswoman didn’t have an answer. Glusenkamp Perez remained silent, walking away from the Fox News reporter as if he wasn’t even there. It was an act of political cowardice.

Taking strategic and politically advantageous votes to forward the perception that she’s a moderate, Gluesenkamp-Perez knows that backing Harris can be tricky. It’s what you’re not being told by left-wing media outlets that anointed Harris the nominee, along with Democrat leaders. They said there’s unbelievable enthusiasm for Harris. Their proof? Self-loathing white women showed up at a “White Women for Kamala Harris” Zoom strategy call. 

Can a so-called moderate Democrat truly endorse a candidate who was the most left-wing when she served in the Senate? Harris was to the left of Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren when she served in the Senate. And given the importance of immigration issues in Washington and around the country, anything positive said about Harris by Glusenkamp Perez could hurt her claim of being a moderate. 

So why doesn’t Glusenkamp Perez publicly denounce Harris? Money.

Don’t alienate the DNC

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) knows that some of their vulnerable House members need to take strategic votes or remain strategically silent in order to mitigate the risks of losing their seats. They’re willing to tolerate that strategy and still fund reasonable defendable seats with these members so long as they don’t hurt.

Limited polling shows the district a toss-up between Glusenkamp Perez and Kent. Democrats obviously don’t want to lose a seat if they can reasonably hang on to it without wasting money that could be better spent in a district they find more competitive. While the electoral map doesn’t favor Democrats in the Senate, it will likely be close in the House. 

If the congresswoman comes out in strong opposition to Harris, it would hurt their greater cause of defeating Donald Trump. Glusenkamp Perez likely doesn’t want to risk losing party support as she fights to keep her seat. So, for now, she thinks silence will serve her best. How long she maintains this silence will likely be polling-dependent.

Glusenkamp Perez’s office didn’t respond to requests for comment by “The Jason Rantz Show” on KTTH. Fox News reports that, as of last week, her campaign said they have no plans to endorse Harris.

Listen to The Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3-7 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here. Follow Jason on X, formerly known as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Follow @https://twitter.com/jasonrantz