Trump dunks on Harris for "taking the assignment"

• Democrats have engaged in soul-searching and finger-pointing within the party as members look to apportion blame for the defeat.

The big picture: Trump gave his view for why the election played out as it did.

• Harris' worst mistake on the campaign trail, according to Trump, was "taking the assignment ... because you have to know what you're good at."
• Trump also criticized Harris for her lack of mainstream media interviews.
• "When she wouldn't talk to anybody, it shone a light on her," Trump said.

Zoom in: Trump also said he felt Republicans tapped into the country's pulse more effectively than Democrats.

• "I don't think they got the feel of the country," he said of the other party.
• "The country was angry," he added, pointing to immigration and the economy as key issues aggravating voters.

• "I thought the economy was a big factor, especially the real economy, which is the economy of going out and buying groceries or buying a car or buying a house," Trump said.

Zoom out: TIME magazine unveiled Trump as their 2024 "Person of the Year" Thursday.

• With the 2024 election results showing the MAGA movement expanded its voting coalition, the magazine lauded Trump's "political rebirth" as "unparalleled" in U.S. history.

Go deeper:

• Trump is Time's 2024 "Person of the Year"
• Trump open to detaining immigrants in camps in deportation push