Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz have run divisive campaigns that label “others” as “kin” as a strategy to rally Democratic voters, but it will not resonate with independents.
You may have heard the word “joy” used to describe the campaign — it was first used by Waltz in his introductory speech for Harris as the nominee — but a more accurate description would be “relief” — relief that President Joe Biden is finally out of the woods.
The real emotion underlying this campaign is one of contempt.
Harris’ campaign speech, which has been repeated verbatim throughout her campaign, includes the catchphrase, “I know what Donald Trump is like.”
What is that “type”? She conjures up various categories of criminals, but the essence of her argument is that we should be able to stereotype Trump based on the group to which he allegedly belongs.
It’s a strange argument for a candidate who has made the most of her membership of a range of minority and oppressed groups – black, Indian, woman – but it is also the strategy of an elitist who has spent most of his life attending private schools and won political success based on his connections to powerful political figures and donors.
Walz appears to have invented the word “weird” to describe former President Donald Trump and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio). It’s not clear what’s so weird about them, aside from Vance’s identity as white, Christian, and working class, a sign that Midwesterners are now viewed by elites on both coasts as outside the American norm.
“Weird person” is a middle school insult that needs no further explanation. A “weird person” is simply someone to be avoided.
Peggy Noonan is not a Trump supporter, Observed of The Wall Street Journal:[Walz] “He always makes it personal. He seems to like Trump supporters. But listening to him this week, I thought, he doesn’t see it that way at all.”
In other words, Democratic candidates are running campaign strategies that encourage their supporters to stereotype and alienate those on the other side.
Historically, this is a losing battle, a strategy deployed by Hillary Clinton in her infamous attack on the “alt-right” in 2016.
Successful campaigns typically seek to broaden support rather than unite their supporters.
But Harris and Walz are betting they can win by rallying Democrats together alone.
Joel B. Pollack is executive editor of Breitbart News. Breitbart News Sunday The show airs Sunday nights from 7 to 10 p.m. (4 to 7 p.m. ET) on SiriusXM Patriot. He is the author of “Agenda: What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days,” which is available for preorder on Amazon. He also wrote,Trumpian virtue: The lessons and legacy of Donald Trump’s presidency” is available on Audible. He is the 2018 recipient of the Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter. Joel Pollack.
