Kamala Harris: A Loser All the Way

IT WAS BAD timing all the way. Donald Trump must thank Joe Biden for his convincing victory over Kamala Harris. By hanging in as long as he did, the Democrats didn’t have time enough for a proper primary which could have thrown up a stronger candidate than Kamala Harris. In the days to come, this realisation will grow stronger among Democrats and Biden can look forward to retirement in a darkened cave, in near-disgrace.

Donald Trump quickly overcame the beating he received at the hands of Kamala Harris in the only presi­dential debate between them, by not wavering from his emphasis on mi­gration and inflation. On both these issues, Trump had hard facts on his side. The Democrats tried to portray both these phenomena as if they were outcrops of a demented mind, and this angered voters.

These voters were not just those in the Republican fold who dug in their heels but also from among those who were day-time Democrats but could be partying with Republicans after hours. These voters were also put off by the indifference Democrats showed on both migrants and inflation when both these issues were not just staring at them but spitting them in the face. Migrants were allowed to enter in large numbers by Biden and today, about 25 per cent of them are clearly illegal.

Harris apologists will doubtlessly say that her defeat was because she could not communicate her points clearly enough, but they will be loath to accept that her principal manifesto was flawed. As time went on, it became clear that Harris was pressing a button that had been disconnected decades ago. Abortion was so far from everyday con­cerns of women that it seemed utterly wokeish and high-minded to be of any relevance to real people; people who did not faff about on college campuses.

Imagine asking people to mobilise on an issue that was well past its shelf life. Abortions are no longer worthy of devotional attention as there are much better contraceptive methods today than what was the case in the 1980s when Kamala Harris was just beginning to break out of political puberty. This fact shows up in the fall in abortion rates over the past 40 years.

Older women above 60 years of age were perhaps nostalgic about abortion and may have pumped Kamala, an age cohort, on this but younger women were not concerned in the same way. They were earning people unlike their counterparts of the earlier generation who were largely, not exclusively, mothers and homemakers. These younger women had better contracep­tives, thought about jobs and budget balancing, which were no longer simply the domain of men.

When you are running on empty and then you start heaping blame on everything but the fact that you did a blooper on the basics and bungled on the roadmap, you should not expect support. Instead, it is most likely that such an attitude would inspire con­tempt. Therefore, when Kamala switched the headlights on Trump’s mental incapacity and dictatorial tendencies, and not on the fact that she was driving them up the wrong way, the electorate just wanted to get off the bus fast.

Urban voters have, in general, stood by Democrats, but their numbers too have fallen. Kamala Harris did not recog­nise this for the longest time in the hope that a literate crowd could be whipped up to froth by stoking intellectual issues like red-flagging democracy being in danger. Even the January 6, 2021 Trump-instigated raid on Capitol Hill had little effect on voters. Elections are not won by asking people to remember history, even recent history. When there are other pressing matters at hand, rarely would one go back four years to an issue whose relevance is debatable today.

Biden has created a legacy which will be remembered for his last days as president and not for what he had done in the years when he was still a thinking person. When he was fit to be president, he was overlooked by Barack Obama who, strangely, chose Hillary Clinton instead. The ambition for the top job, however, burned bright in Biden even as his intellect and foresight dimmed.

As they say, timing is of the essence. Biden came in too late and stayed on too long. Kamala Harris too was a victim of bad timing. By centralising abortion, when she did, she not just missed the bus but fell under it.

About The Author

Dipankar Gupta

Dipankar Gupta is a sociologist. He is the author of, among other titles, Q.E.D.: India Tests Social Theory and Checkpoint Sociology: A Cultural Reading of Policies and Politics