Kamala Harris' re-emergence, her transformation from nationally hated vice president to transformative political savior, was so astonishing it was enough to make Democrats despair about Joe Biden's chances of running in 2024.
Popularity is hard to emulate, and anyone who experienced the campaigns of Bill Clinton or Barack Obama and the excitement and buzz that surrounded their respective messages knows Kamala is different.
Part of Kamala's “joy” catchphrase feels like it's a way to describe the laughter, but it's painfully clear that the laughter doesn't come from joy.
Both Clinton and Obama had “hope” and the promise of change; Kamala has “joy” and the continuation of an unpopular presidency. The sold-out crowd at the Democratic National Convention earlier this month didn't change things. It's like a lavish birthday party for a kid nobody likes. Large partisan crowds don't necessarily translate into broader excitement, but we're asked to believe otherwise. It's like saying you're on the people's side because you wear flannel.
Redefining Kamala Harris will not be an easy task. She has taken politically unpopular positions in the past, from supporting open borders to ending private health insurance and halting drilling and fracking.
She is known for being stymied by the policies and missteps of the Biden administration, including inflation, stagnant wages and a slowing labor market, withdrawal from Afghanistan, illegal immigration, the wars in Ukraine and Israel, etc. She has zero notable accomplishments as vice president.
Part of the difficulty in moving forward from Biden's failure is the fact that Kamala is struggling to define herself apart from the Biden administration. Official websitestill She did not say where she stands on the issue.
One reason for her silence is political calculation: the idea that the less she says about the issues, the more she can campaign on platitudes like diversity, liberalism, freedom and democracy.
She talk On the economy, and her proposals of more spending, modest tax cuts and inflation-adjusted downpayment assistance (she doesn’t know who would pay for it), while blaming inflation on businesses: “I know that most businesses create jobs, contribute to the economy and play by the rules. But some things aren't like that..”
People are wondering: What exactly is Kamala? forWhat does your support for Kamala mean?
Just knowing her background might provide some information that might provide the answer. The Hill: “Based on roll call voting records, Ms. Harris is the second most liberal Democrat to have served in the 21st century senate.” Kamala's views are much harder to understand for the average voter. Voters will only know for sure if they vote.
Kamala must be promoted, and the media will have a tough job. Shall I state the obvious? Positive media coverage of the Democratic candidate is campaigning for the Democratic candidate.
The New York Times Reports “Joy is galvanizing her campaign.” Who's saying that? The Kamala campaign. You'd think the media would want an objective source on that.
Are we to believe that this campaign is not driven by a desire for power? Isn't it fueled by millions of dollars in donations from corporations and special interests?
After attending the Democratic National Convention, the media reported on Kamala Fashion Choice“Brown suit!” yelled one of the New York Times reporters.
Axios defended Kamala's plan to stop “price gouging” at grocery stores (an attempt to deflect blame from the Biden-Harris inflation narrative), reminding readers that “Harris' economic proposals are, broadly speaking, aimed at helping middle-class Americans cope with the rising cost of living.”
In response, we ask: What kind of policy? Forget analysis. why Voters don't need to know that the middle class is suffering or hear debates about the root causes of inflation.
Meanwhile, the media has not disputed Kamala's refusal to give interviews or answer questions. The Kamala campaign and the media appear to be using the same strategy: withholding information from the public so they don't know who Harris and Waltz really are.
But no matter how hard he tries, Kamala's record will be known, and no matter how hard he tries to moderate it, the more extreme parts of his policies will be revealed. Price controls are just the beginning.
She also supports a tax on unrealized gains (gains that have not yet been realized). Minimum 25% tax on unrealized gains An individual with income and assets exceeding $100 million.”
This is a “radical departure” from the norm that subjects Americans to arbitrary assessments on arbitrary dates and imposes “double and triple taxation.” Once adopted, it will likely apply to all of us. No one is safe. The government cannot limit itself. Good luck with your 401(k) or Schwab account or house.
Can Kamala shake off her liberal past, her 2020 campaign comments (for starters, she supported a ban on fracking), her responsibilities as vice president for the border, and the failures of the Biden administration?
Kamala lacks the confidence to articulate who she is and what she believes. She lacks boldness, especially compared to her predecessor, as evidenced by her decision to only appear in one debate despite the close race. But she also lacks something else. Credibility.
Her previous suggestions are rejected today, and the central message of her campaign is lacking other than standing up to Trump, perhaps because she is unsure of herself and filled with insecurity. need She breaks out into an ill-timed, awkward laugh to ease the tension, and part of Kamala's “joy” catchphrase feels like it's meant to be a way to describe that laugh, but it's painfully clear that it doesn't come from joy.
This insecurity perhaps explains her biggest mistake so far: choosing Tim Walz as her vice president. She's not a leader, she needs followers.
Kamala, the Democratic establishment's reluctant choice, can't let Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro or California Governor Gavin Newsom take her place. Whatever their problems (and there are many), they are much more invisible than Kamala's. Shapiro may have been able to carry Pennsylvania, but Waltz is a true lackey with no ambition beyond the vice presidency. He is neither Kamala's successor nor her rival.
Instead, Waltz is happy to play the part of a cartoonish minstrel, a white Midwestern provincial who's been sold to suburbanites (a role I think Walter Kahn played), and he ends up serving as a phony soldier, literally and figuratively, in the phoniest election campaign in recent memory.
Editor's note: This essay was originally published in Reactionary.
