Everything the Democrats do is about optics

She has pretty terrible political instincts, so I imagine that it is something like:

"Harris fought internally to distance herself from the Biden administration and their policies, but the party, the Biden admin, and her campaign advised her against that strategy."

Which, in her mind paints the picture that her hands were tied and that she inherited a bad situation. What she doesn't understand is that her cowardice and lack of conviction is what people dislike about her.