What Kamala Harris Is Doing Right
What Kamala Harris Is Doing Right
It's only been about four weeks since President Joe Biden announced he would end his reelection campaign, and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for President. In the week following the endorsement, Harris managed to shore up unofficial support from enough party delegates to become the presumptive nominee, quickly gained back support from Congressional Democrats who may have withdrawn their endorsement of or even called on Biden to step aside, and, more recently, she selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her vice presidential running mate.
One thing struck me about Harris' campaign, though, when I was scrolling through Instagram not too long ago. I stumbled across a video, on Tim Walz's campaign account, of Harris, Walz, and Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff, at a convenience store, picking out chips. Harris asks Walz, standing on the other side of the chip rack, "You see any corn nuts over there, Tim?" before Walz pops up wielding a bag of Nacho Cheese Doritos, which Harris gladly accepts.
I'll admit, if I were to remake the animated TV show American Dad, but this time with less of a proclivity for the sheer, unchecked patriotism that CIA Special Agent Stan Smith projects, and a more balanced, realistic approach, Tim Walz would be my inspiration. He embodies, for so many Americans, what we remember, or currently know a "dad" to be – corny jokes, plainspoken attitude, and the odd ability to be open to a "Hey, Dad?" at any moment. But that is not what struck me while watching Walz proudly hand Harris a bag of Doritos.
What struck me was more that Kamala Harris has succeeded in reminding the American people that she and Tim Walz are not some gods to be idolized and placed on a high throne. Rather, they are ordinary Americans, just like us, who share the same traits as us; most evidently in this convenience store interaction, that they have preferences for the type of chips they like.
For so long, the President of the United States has been regarded as someone other than human. A video was shared by news outlets of 81-year-old President Biden arriving at the White House late at night. Reporters were gathered to ask the president questions. Many in the comments were angry because he simply ignored the reporters and went inside. But what these angry commenters forgot to realize is, oh right, he's 81 years old! 11 p.m. is unattainable for my 69-year-old grandparents, let alone an 81-year-old who has the weight of an entire country on his shoulders.
Kamala Harris is reminding us that she's human – and that's something she's doing right, in my book.
The Voice
September 2024
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