Leading Democrats quickly rallied behind presidential candidate Harris. Can the former prosecutor also become president?
She is considered cool and is the embodiment of the West Coast liberal elite: Kamala Harris, here in the 2019 election campaign Photo: Mark Peterson/Redux/laif
At seven minutes and 56 seconds, Brett Kavenaugh was in what could be described as a state medium rare could describe. It took Kamala Harris just seven minutes and 56 seconds to perfectly present Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee to the public during a hearing before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on September 6, 2018.
“Hmm, I don’t remember. ‘But if you have something you’d like to… I need to know… I’m not sure I know everybody…” Kavenaugh stumbled through Harris’s questions. The US senator, later vice president and former attorney general of California failed to jog the judge’s memory. He himself has “an impeccable memory.” It was a performance by Harris for the history books. The appearance of a brilliant prosecutor. But can she also be president?
It took him four long, painful weeks — through plummeting polls, a pandemic and a lack of campaign financing — to get there. US President Joe Biden saw the inevitableOn Sunday, he named Kamala Harris as his political heir.
And yet during a like From Jones at CNN Shedding tears at Biden’s great patriotic act — “People are heartbroken, even though they pushed Biden” — Harris claimed the candidacy for herself. She doesn’t lack determination. Nor is she one to let doubts hold her back.
Campaign donations have reopened
Harris leaves the waffling to others. Democratic officials rallied around Harris on Monday. The campaign donation spigot appeared to be open again. On Sunday alone, the donation platform BlueAct reported that $46.7 million in small donations had been received. But party leaders such as former U.S. President Barack Obama, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries remained conspicuously silent.
You probably remember Kamala Harris’ campaign when she ran against Joe Biden within the party in the 2020 election year. She cannot serve as a good role model. As soon as the campaign started, it imploded. It is said that the internal management was dysfunctional. People from their own camp quickly started to distribute the blame. The strong influence of Harris’ family was seen as a problem, especially that of her sister Maya. No one says that Harris has a talent for staff and good advisors. She is not someone who likes to receive advice anyway.
As a foil to Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance, the cool and aloof Kamala Harris is perfect for this. And that’s a problem. Vance is a man from the neglected so-called Fly over countries. Someone who has risen from poverty and is skilled at imitating the voice of the (white) people. Harris, on the other hand, is the embodiment of the West Coast elite against whom MAGA America is conspiring.
The 59-year-old with Jamaican-Indian immigrant roots was born in Oakland, California, to a family of civil rights activists. She studied law and quickly rose to the California judiciary. In Biden’s shadow, her liberal West Coast roots were no problem. The Scranton, Pennsylvania, hard-working native of the neglected Rust Belt has brought infrastructure and manufacturing jobs back there with his policies. There has yet to be a convincing answer to Harris’ lack of credibility in crucial swing states.
Can she win over the working class? Kamala Harris with her husband at a state banquet, April 2024 Photo: abaca press/imago
In the shadow of the president?
The accusation against Harris that he has gained little fame and popularity in this office falls back on Joe Biden himself. As vice president, you are in the shadow of the president; Biden himself knows this and he hated it. Foreign policy? Only as a substitute. And how was Harris to deal with what was left of her? The issue of migration, the most sensitive point in democratic politicscollect popularity points?
Even after nearly four years in power, Americans still don’t know what Harris really stands for. She exudes identity politics and, as a woman of law and order, is to the right of Biden. She said harsh words about the US-Mexico border, which she then has to collect. Your program: Kamala for president.
Recent polls suggest this program may be a bit too thin, with Harris only marginally outperforming Joe Biden. This is evident from figures from the Washington Post Trump most recently held a 1.5 percentage point lead over Harris, with a 1.9 percentage point lead over Biden. In the latest NBC News poll (but before the Trump attack), both Biden and Harris were trailing Trump by 2 percentage points. Harris’s approval ratings have been consistently well below 40 percent for months.
Her mother “raised her and her sister to be proud, strong black women,” Harris once said. You can safely assume she will fight. The support comes mainly from American women’s side. Emily’s List, an American political action committee (PAC), for Democratic candidates who support abortion rights, for example. Harris is “our best candidate for the White House,” said PAC chair Jessica Mackler. Emily’s List is expected to provide at least $20 million for Harris’ candidacy. And if there is one issue that Harris has made a convincing case for, it is the abortion ban. A topic that will have a lot to do with the outcome of the election.
Four weeks after the September 2018 hearing, Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavenaugh was sworn in. In the meantime, he and his reactionary majority took responsibility the end of progressive abortion jurisprudence. It will be a pleasure for Kamala Harris to take on Kavenaugh again.