'I Love Venn Diagrams': Harris's Favorite Line, Nine Times Before the 2022 Midterms (October 28, 2022)

Vice President Kamala Harris had a favorite line on the 2022 campaign trail, and the crowd in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, heard it on Oct. 28. “I love Venn diagrams. (Laughter.) I really do. I love Venn diagrams. It’s just something about those three circles and the analysis about where there is the intersection, right?” she said [1].

It was not the first time. A HYGO News search of the official transcripts published by the American Presidency Project found Harris praising Venn diagrams at nine events in the five weeks before the midterm elections, from Oct. 5 to Nov. 3, 2022 [1]-[9]. The vice presidential press pool even called it “one of her common references” [10].

The video above shows the Bryn Mawr version, from a moderated conversation on abortion rights. Quotes are from the official transcripts.

Nine Times in a Month

Here is what the official record shows, in order:

Oct. 5, New Britain, Connecticut. “I’ve actually asked my team to do a Venn diagram. I love Venn diagrams. (Laughter.) I just love Venn diagrams. You know, the three circles — right? — sometimes there are more — and the intersection” [2].
Oct. 8, Austin, Texas. “Well, let me just say: I love Venn diagrams. (Laughs.) I really love Venn diagrams. You know, the circles, right? Three usually” [3].
Oct. 17, Los Angeles. “I love Venn diagrams. Okay?” Then: “I really do. I love Venn diagrams — you know, the three circles — sometimes there are more” [4].
Oct. 18, San Francisco, at a Democratic National Committee fundraiser. “Some of you have known me forever, and you’ll know that I love Venn diagrams. (Laughter.) I just do love Venn diagrams” [5].
Oct. 19, San Francisco, on a climate podcast. “I love Venn diagrams, let me just tell you. I really just love Venn diagrams” [6].
Oct. 22, St. Paul, Minnesota. “I love Venn diagrams. I just — like, just throw it into a Venn diagram. It’ll tell you everything you need to know about any issue” [7].
Oct. 25, Albuquerque, New Mexico. “So, let me tell you, I love Venn diagrams. (Laughter.) I love Venn diagrams — you know, the three circles” [8].
Oct. 28, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. “I love Venn diagrams. (Laughter.) I really do” [1].
Nov. 3, New York City, at a rally for Gov. Kathy Hochul. “You know, I like Venn diagrams, okay?” [9]

One Circle, Then Another

At the first stop, in Connecticut, Harris walked the audience through it. “And so I asked them, ‘Show me from which states we are seeing attacks on voting rights.’ One circle. ‘From which state are we seeing attacks on LGBTQ rights.’ Another circle. ‘From which states are we seeing attacks on women’s health rights.’ You would not be surprised to see the intersection,” she said [2].

The lesson, she said, was “coalition-building potential” [2].

”I Brought Props”

In Bryn Mawr and Albuquerque, Harris came with a visual aid. “So — okay, so I asked my team — I brought props,” she said in Pennsylvania [1].

In New Mexico, the transcript notes that “the Vice President holds up a Venn diagram.” “Okay, so there you go. Okay? So, you are not surprised to know that there is an overlap,” Harris said [8].

The diagram’s circles were the same at most stops. “Tell me from which states are we seeing attacks on women’s reproductive healthcare, attacks on voting rights, and attacks on LGBTQ+ rights,” Harris said she asked her team [1].

In Bryn Mawr, she named the states in the middle: “Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, Arizona” [1].

”Something Might Be Afoot”

Harris told the Pennsylvania crowd what she took from it. “So this then tells us, you know, something might be afoot here,” she said. “But what it also tells us is there is an incredible capacity to renew our commitment to coalition-building” [1].

At the climate podcast, she added another layer. “When you then lay on which states are also attacking or obstructing smart climate policy, you will see a really interesting picture,” Harris said [6].

At the Hochul rally, she took aim at Justice Clarence Thomas. “And, by the way, Clarence Thomas said the quiet part out loud,” Harris said [9].

By the Numbers

9: events where Harris praised Venn diagrams in the official transcripts, Oct. 5 to Nov. 3, 2022 [1]-[9].
3: circles, “usually,” as Harris put it in Austin [3].
5: states she named in the overlap in Bryn Mawr [1].
222-213: the Republican House majority voters elected days later [11].
312-226: Trump’s Electoral College win over Harris in 2024 [12].

What Happened Next

Republicans took the House. Five days after the Hochul rally, voters handed Republicans the House majority. The 118th Congress opened with 222 Republicans and 213 Democrats, according to the House historian [11].

Harris got her own campaign and lost. In 2024, Harris replaced President Joe Biden at the top of the Democratic ticket. Donald Trump and JD Vance beat Harris and Tim Walz, 312 electoral votes to 226, according to the National Archives [12].

For another Harris moment from that era, see HYGO News’ page on Harris and the Speaker fight.