Elon Musk had a hand in keeping Kamala Harris off Joe Rogan’s podcast, reveals new book
WASHINGTON, DC: A forthcoming book by Amie Parnes of The Hill and Jonathan Allen of NBC News reportedly contains details regarding the failed attempt by the Kamala Harris campaign to land an interview with Joe Rogan.
Moreover, the new book, 'FIGHT: Inside the Wildest Battle for the White House', has shed new light on how tech tycoon Elon Musk allegedly had a hand in Harris' failure to secure an interview with Rogan during the last stretch of her presidential campaign.
Elon Musk allegedly convinced Joe Rogan to feature Trump instead of Kamala Harris in podcast
According to the new book, Kamala Harris was scheduled to travel to Joe Rogan's studio in Austin, Texas, for an hours-long, off-limits interview in late October, but it was allegedly canceled by his staff only days before she was scheduled to arrive.
However, Rogan's crew booked Donald Trump on the same day Harris was planned to be in Texas, so the sit-down never happened.
The book claimed that Rogan's friends Musk and Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White persuaded one of the most prominent podcasters to set aside his disagreements with President Trump for an interview.
The three-hour podcast with Trump was well received, and snippets of their conversation went viral immediately. However, Harris was left hanging with her camp refusing to travel to Texas a second time to meet with Rogan so near to Election Day.
Furthermore, many believed that she might still triumph that weekend by having stars like Beyonce at her rally in Houston, who showed up to speak and not sing. Perhaps it did not make as big of an impact as a long, unvarnished interview with Rogan.
Harris' team made one last attempt to convince Rogan in the closing days of the campaign. The podcaster's crew was informed that Harris may be interviewed in Washington, DC, on Election Day eve. However, Rogan's team declined, per The Daily Beast.
According to the book, Harris’ deputy campaign manager Rob Flaherty told Rogan's allies, "You get one trip to Texas within three weeks of the election. You don’t get two."
However, Rogan put his complete support for Trump in the run-up to the election, confirming that Trump had won the Rogan war—he did with the wave of YouTubers and TikTokers he welcomed earlier than Harris during the election buildup.
Joe Rogan's team apparently insisted that he would only interview Kamala Harris in his studio
According to an excerpt from the book, which will be released on April 1, Kamala Harris' team made every effort to ensure that the former vice president's interview with Joe Rogan did not come across as desperate.
Rogan's team allegedly insisted that he would only interview Harris in his studio. The podcaster, who has nearly 15 million Spotify subscribers alone, had only previously gone for an interview once—in 2019 to talk with Edward Snowden, the legendary whistleblower who was wanted in the United States at the time.
According to the book, Harris' team came up with a complex justification for her visit to a state she had no chance of winning in the last few weeks of her campaign, as she was not allowed to do an interview outside of Texas.
Harris' team decided to hold a rally in Houston on October 25 to raise awareness of abortion in a state that was and remains extremely anti-abortion.
The book asserts that the rally's real goal was to place Harris close to Rogan's studio, which is about 165 miles west of the city while trying to explain to her supporters why she traveled to Texas when she was needed in the swing states.
While the Houston event was being planned, Harris sent an advance crew to Rogan's studio. She gave her negotiating team permission to approve the interview and let Rogan know when she would be in town because she was allegedly prepared to accept Rogan's requirements.
But according to reports, Rob Flaherty noticed that Rogan's camp was now speaking in a "different" tone. Those same individuals who previously shown receptive to a Rogan-Harris interview were now less enthusiastic.
According to the book, Flaherty was surprised that Rogan was not eager to interview Harris just two weeks before Election Day, particularly given how infrequently she had been in the media.
The book cited Flaherty's thoughts at the time as follows: "The vice president of the United States is offering to come to your f*****g show, and you keep putting up more hoops."
"Harris’ team still wanted to make it work, but a new wariness set in," the book continued. Four days later, an apparent answer appeared.
According to the Associated Press, Trump was scheduled to travel to Austin on October 25 for an interview with Rogan. And, Rogan's staff claimed that Trump was unavailable for the "personal day" on October 25.
