Kamala to the Rescue?

The Prosecutor Vs. The Felon

Joe Biden's dropping out of the 2024 Presidential race was the right thing to do. If he had stayed in it would have resulted in a devastating and embarrassing defeat and a tyrannical shift to the right. The Senate and the House could have gone to the Republicans and even more right-leaning judges would have left an indelible mark on the courts, further eroding reproductive, marriage equality and LGBTQ rights. I was sitting in a restaurant on Sunday afternoon with my friend Diane eating a veggie burger when the news of Biden's decision broke. Team Trump and many in the mass media were expecting chaos to ensue. They thought there would a scramble to replace Biden since there would be objections to Harris taking the top slot because her gender and race would not make her the perfect candidate. 

But within 24 hours, Harris had smashed records in fund raising and volunteers, acquired the endorsements of almost every major Democratic leader and most of the delegates necessary to cop the nomination at the convention. Joe Manchin made brief noises about maybe being interested in challenging her, but that was shot down quickly. 

The burst of enthusiasm is due to the huge relief Dems and progressives felt after being saved from a disaster by Biden's selfless stepping aside. A blue win is by no mean a slam dunk, but at least now there is a chance we can win. Harris can benefit from the shake-up because of the double-haters--voters who despise both previous candidates. Ironically Nikki Haley made a Cassandra-like prediction during the Republican primary by saying whichever side retired their 80-year-old candidate first would be the winner. (I hope she's right.) In a further ironic side note, Republicans who hate Trump have formed a PAC called Haley Voters for Harris. Haley has issued a Cease and Desist Order to change the name since she is for Trump (like the toady she is.) The PAC has responded that they are not speaking for Haley so they shouldn't have to change their name. We'll see how that shakes out.

But to return to my earlier point about enthusiasm for Harris. The double-haters now do not have to reluctantly vote for one of the two same 2020 candidates. Plus, here is an opportunity for Dems to finally put a woman--and a woman of color at that--into the presidency. That's no small thing and it might energize all the right demographics that Harris needs to win--young voters, white women, women of color. Previously they were not that excited about voting for an old, white, straight guy. The Democratic Convention is a great opportunity for Harris to sell her message and with good speeches by Biden and Obama, it could push her over the top to win in November.

Harris still has an uphill climb. Aside from the stupid attacks on her race, gender and being a DEI hire (which is offensive to black voters), the border issue is a big weakness. She is perceived as being the "border czar" (actually she was in charge of diplomatic efforts in Central America) and though Biden's executive order did decrease border crossings, there is still the perception there are too many illegal entries for people taking away jobs that Americans don't want to do anyway. Inflation is another sticking point. But Harris can make the case that unemployment is down, that Project 2025 advocates higher taxes for the middle-class and a Trump win will mean fewer abortion rights. I guess nobody cares that Trump is a threat to our Democracy. I hope that's not true. 

BTW, JD Vance made a lame joke about Dems calling you a racist if you drink Diet Mountain Dew. That's the best he's got?

The other day I saw a pair of tourists getting their picture taken in front of Trump's name at Columbus Circle. Why did they want it? What are they thinking? His assault on a peaceful transfer of power on Jan. 6, 2021 was OK with them?