OPINION: VP Kamala Harris’ presidential pluses and minuses

Last Updated on Wednesday, 24 July 2024, 19:09 by Writer

By GHK Lall

US Vice President Kamala Harris is the woman of the moment. Ms. Harris could be a strong contender for Woman of the Year, depending on November. Once that barrier is scaled and the rest falls into place, pursuant to democratic norms, she could qualify to be Woman of the Decade. I stop there for now, but circumstances may help her hurtle into the stratosphere of Woman of the Century. What are her chances? How I do see her sudden, long-delayed presence on centerstage shaping up?

The odds are tight, tighter than a guitar string, even tenser than a coiled cobra. There is Donald Trump: survivor, battler and brawler, and kicker of any sacred cow at which he can direct his feet and the furies that have taken control of him. Race is a good one, being a woman is another, or a migrant also qualify. The worst possible position to be in relative to Trump and November, and from then to 1600 Pennsylvania is as a contestant of merit and strength and utter cool and courage. I think that VP Harris has what it takes to stand in his way and elbow him out of the way. Here are a few supporting facts for her call.

First, the Democrats have lost their five percent voter registration edge, but still hang on to the slightest of numerical edges. Democratic candidate Kamala Harris should do well with those. The Independents within her party are those that she must cultivate, get them to believe in her candidacy, notwithstanding her color, her gender. This group is pivotal, because it hinges on how much ancient American prejudices have diminished (if at all), and how much a Black woman of foreign-born parentage can pass muster. Americans have a chance to prove themselves, show the world how deep they are. As an aside, I wonder how Ms. Harris would do in a Guyana election, considering her pedigree. If this is not found offensive, I think she meets the criterion for identification as among those who Guyanese label as ‘dougla.’ Worth a thought, isn’t it? If any purist objects, apologies are tendered. Moreover, given her spouse and the quality of her marriage, those also must have some weight. Further, I think that the prospects are good for Kamala Harris to attract some of the colored votes for Trump to her side. Just because of who she is. I would do it. The Hispanic vote is undecided, but President Biden’s waltz around immigration should stand her in good stead. After his incendiary tirades about borders, migrants, and foreign lawbreakers, it is difficult to identify Hispanics for Trump.

Second, I was able to retrieve some recordings of Ms. Harris in action in different forums. Let this much be said with strength: she is relentless, has an instinct for the jugular, is a skilled debater, is a cool operator, and on a middling evening could make mincemeat of one Donald Trump. Forget about fact-checking and Trump. Here is the pronouncement: the man is a walking, smoking, overspilling fracking institution all by himself. Ms. Harris could give him a hand in any debate to blow up himself. To be unsparingly brutal: Kamala Harris could help Donald Trump to defrock himself before any American and global audience. It is time that somebody stand up to this demagogue cum bullyboy (the same thing, really) and shove two thumbs in his eyes. I also say this, some New Yorkers have a well-deserved reputation for being obnoxious and totally insufferable. Whoever came up with that hasn’t seen or dealt with Herr Donald Trump yet. I think that this American has the strain of a particular kind of German in him. I think that candidate Harris has what it takes to knock down his Aryan sensitivities and show that, at the core, Trump is just a weak man, a cheap hustler, and a thoroughbred pretender and bumbler. By way of another digression, Guyanese should have no difficulty with what I am aggressively laying on the table, for there are those kinds here. At least one, maybe two. If anyone needs a hand with where to look, they are free to check with me. Just call OP or OVP.

Third, though the forgotten man, the VP’s choice of VP running mate is crucial. The men from Pennsylvania (Shapiro) and Arizona (Kelly) have their merits and drawing power. But she must go into the very heart of the Deep South, as slim as the pickings are. Since I am not pulling any punches, it cannot be a Black partner or another woman, as I don’t think that America is psychically conditioned to go for either at this time. A diversified ticket would be more representative and acceptable to today’s America. As matters stand, VP Harris and contender Harris has the political fight of her life on her hands, she is not allowed a misstep. The latter is a loaded statement but has its truths.

Last, she must run a gaffe-free campaign, and has the disadvantage of starting late and on the back foot, due to no fault of her own. She will rake in the money, she must rouse the lethargic fence sitters in her party. The keys are a superb team, and all her party’s registered voters turning up on voting day and sticking to her, it could be a November to remember. So, too, what happens between now and then. If not, it would be back to pre-Civil War America and the death of the American ideal, the grand American experiment. May God bless America! (No local umbrage and sanctions should follow).