“Trump is weird” will only get Kamala Harris so far

In recent weeks, national Democrats and surrogates for Vice President Kamala Harris have settled on a pretty simple strategy: calling former President Donald Trump, his running mate Sen. J.D. Vance, and MAGA-aligned Republicans “weird.” One of its original purveyors, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, used it again Tuesday evening, during his first appearance with Harris as her running mate.

“You know it. You feel it. These guys are creepy and, yes, just weird as hell!” Walz said, after telling a joke that played into a meme about Vance and couches.

Democrats have found plenty of fodder for the tactic, which they’ve used to describe Republican positions on abortion rights and IVF, on the role of parents and biological children, and on an array of other right-wing beliefs.

The attacks may be sticking — hardening the preexisting views many Americans have toward Trump, Vance, and the national Republican brand.