The Case for Kamala
OPINION: I think the strongest pairing to defeat former president Donald Trump and his eventual sycophantic running mate might be Vice President Kamala Harris and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Joe Biden rescued us from a deadly pandemic, economic failure, a violent insurrection and from a wanna-be autocrat. His legislative record is stellar, remarkable. He has signed into law programs to rebuild America, protect veterans, reduce poverty, increase employment, foster domestic manufacturing, advance U.S. technologies and fight climate change. All this in spite of obstructionist Republicans in Congress.
By any measure, the administration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris is a success. It is a record to be envied & heralded. It is a record on which to run for a second term. And I suggest that Kamala Harris run for president on that record for the 2024 presidential election against Donald Trump.
So, what is the case for Kamala?
She would likely have firm support from the strongest voices of the Democratic base - Black women.
She would be an articulate advocate for one of the most important issues for Democrats - reproductive rights.
She would represent the next generation of elected Democratic representatives - younger, experienced, visionary leaders.
She would be able, as a former attorney general, to clearly prosecute the case against Donald Trump as an existential threat to democracy.
She would be able to run on the success of the Biden/Harris administration.
The Democrats have no dearth of strong candidates for the presidency of the United States - most of them governors:
California Governor Gavin Newson
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear
Then there is Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Senators Cory Booker & Amy Klobuchar. Others too.
CNN Poll: Most voters think Democrats have a better chance of keeping White House if Biden isn’t the nominee
In the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries my preferred candidates were Elizabeth Warren & Kamala Harris. But, I have found Vice President Harris’ performance in office to be mostly underwhelming. That may be because I just haven’t seen or heard much from her during the Biden presidency.
But in interviews following President Biden’s disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump (which caused the current panic in the Democratic party), the Vice President conducted herself with focused persuasion. I have never seen her better. She would, I think, be able to stand up against Trump in a debate and call out his lies and his extremist intentions.
Now, my strongest desire would be for Gavin Newsom to be the 2024 Democratic presidential candidate. He has been ‘campaigning’ on behalf of the party’s ideals all across the country. He is unafraid to step into the lion’s den. He has appeared on FOX News and has posted on Truth Social, confronting the malignancies of the MAGA movement. He has eloquently & successfully sparred with Sean Hannity and Ron DeSantis. He has prepared himself for a presidential quest. He’s ready.
(California Governor Gavin Newsom)
But, my sense right now, and it may be too early to believe this, is that the Democratic party establishment and donors would find it easier to move to Harris than to move to Newsom. Also, there is the question of who would legally have access to the gigantic war chest of the Democratic party’s campaign funds. I haven’t fully researched this, but I’ve heard that it would be easier to transfer it to the vice president than other potential candidates.
POLITICO: It’s Not Too Late to Replace Biden and Defeat Trump - by former White House Counsel Gregory B. Craig
So, if the party can find a mechanism to field a roster of candidates before their nomination gathering in Chicago, giving each of them a voice, and allowing the rank and file to choose their nominee at an open convention, which ticket would be the strongest against Donald Trump and his eventual running mate?
I think the strongest pairing might be Kamala Harris and Gretchen Whitmer. Whitmer is the popular governor of Michigan, a swing state that really must be won. And what an incentive for Democratic women to come out in droves to the polls with two women on the ticket.
Gavin Newsom would outshine Harris if he were on the ticket, and, in any event, I don’t believe he would be interested in being vice president. I don’t think governors Pritzker, Shapiro or Beshear have enough voter recognition to garner any enthusiasm with voters. Whitmer, on the other hand, I think could become well-known across the nation in pretty short order. I’m a big advocate of governors as presidents.
(Wisconsin Governor Gretchen Whitmer)
As I write this, there is a growing chorus of Democratic elders who are dropping the name of Kamala Harris as the natural successor to President Biden. But, the situation is very fluid and volatile. There really is no telling, right now, what course the Democrats will ultimately take.
NEWSWEEK: Kamala Harris Should Be the Democratic Nominee for President in 2024 - by Tim Ryan
Biden has spent time after his debate debacle talking to his most trusted advisor, his wife, the First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden. She is publicly calling for him to stay the course. We don’t really know what the president’s other closest advisors are counseling or what he may or may not be hearing from Democratic leadership. Tomorrow he is meeting with Democratic governors from across the country. So, watch this space.
In 2020 I truly believed that only Joe Biden could beat Donald Trump. Not Bernie or Elizabeth or Amy or Pete or Kamala. Just Joe. And so he did. Now, I don’t believe that is true. In fact, he may be the only Democrat who would lose to Trump.
When Biden framed Trump as an existential threat to democracy he was speaking the truth. That is still true, now more than ever. In 2020 Biden presented himself as a ‘bridge president’ to a new generation of Democratic leaders. That was true then and it is especially true now. He should fulfill that promise to the voters and the party.
So, bottom line is that President Joe Biden can strengthen his legacy by stepping aside now, and allowing a younger Democratic leader to carry on the party’s agenda. He has been a remarkable president. He has restored America’s place in the world. He has shown that bipartisanship can work, in spite of Republican entrenched intransigence. He has demonstrated that liberal ideas can improve America. He has epitomized integrity, honesty, humility, principle and decency.
We can not let Donald Trump win back the presidency. We can not let America devolve from a democratic republic into a ‘Unitary President’ autocracy. We can not let an immunized President Donald Trump pervert the Executive Branch of the American government. He has already cowed the Congress and corrupted the Supreme Court.
If Trump wins back the Oval Office he will decimate the civil service, sequester congressional appropriations, weaponize the Justice department, indict his political enemies, pardon his militia minions, install sycophantic loyalists, nationalize law enforcement, militarize American cities, run detention centers, deport millions of immigrants, ignore the rule of law and work to ‘repeal and replace’ the Constitution of the United States.
As President Biden has clearly articulated, Donald Trump is an existential threat to democracy. Democrats across the political spectrum must rally support behind the best possible presidential ticket to prevent Trump, MAGA & Project 2025 from taking control of the United States of America.
To that end, it’s time for President Joe Biden to retire, with honor, with America’s appreciation and gratitude. It’s time for a generational change in the Democratic party, the halls of Congress and the White House.
It just may be time for Harris/Whitmer.
You have presented some good reason for a change in the ticket at this time. I think Harris can do well in a race against Trump. Democracy must be saved for this and future generations to come.