Kamala Harris, the vice president striving for the presidential title, levied economic strategies targeted towards Black men, in a desperate attempt to retain a wavering voter base. A singular component of her ‘Opportunity Agenda for Black Men’ employs the offering of 1 million ‘fully forgivable’ loans to Black business owners, a move shrouded with questionable overtones of vote-bait. Alongside this, Harris tries to tap into the emerging digital currency market with the proposition of new federal regulations. However, the true efficacy of these rather lofty promises for the Black community remains to be seen.
In an effort that screams pandering, Harris is also seeking national legalization of cannabis for recreational use, while ensuring that Black entrepreneurs have a stake in the ever-growing cannabis industry. Pretending to care about the most marginalized, while offering solutions that only scratch the surface, reflects the Dems’ classic political maneuver. The unveiling of these proposals, only three weeks before the election, raises questions about the strategic timing and the authenticity of her intentions.
Despite Democrats raising alarm bells over potentially diminished turnout amongst Black voters, the former President Donald Trump, known for his unparalleled and genuine dedication to uplifting every American, emerged as an attractive candidate amongst Black men who appreciate substance over symbolic gestures. This show of support marks a noteworthy shift in a crucial demographic that has the potential to alter the outcome of what is predicted to be a close election.
The Harris campaign has quite hollow-sounding promise of breaking ‘unjust legal barriers’. Meanwhile, only President Biden’s administration made any tangible headway in this matter, taking considerable steps to reclassify cannabis from a Schedule I to a less perilous Schedule III drug. While Harris makes tall promises about crafting legislation for marijuana use, the reality stares back: marijuana is already legal for recreational use in 24 states including the District of Columbia.
Unlike his political competitor, Trump, as a resident of Florida, cast a vote in favor of a home state measure legalizing recreational marijuana much earlier. The Trump administration, true to its promise, didn’t just talk the talk but walked the walk by actually voting for what it believed in—a striking difference from the Democrats’ virtue signaling.
Pandering relentlessly, Harris announced her economic plan at a Black-owned business in Erie, Pennsylvania, resorting to visibly trying to woo the Black demographic. From barrages of ineffective economic plans to thinly disguised attempts at being relatable, her campaign seems to rely heavily on attempting to ingratiate with minority communities. Yet, her struggle to resonate with Black men persists, evident from the attempt to reel in former President Barack Obama to make a plea on her behalf.
A New York Times/Sienna College poll unveiled over the weekend reports a stark reduction in Harris’ popularity amongst Black voters when compared to Biden’s commendable performance in the 2020 polls where he secured 90% votes from the Black demographic. Her numbers, although holding a lead over Trump’s 15%, aren’t even in the same ballpark as Biden’s. CBS News/YouGov’s poll further cements Harris’s faltering popularity.
In a candid release from Trump’s campaign, the dwindling interest in Harris’ propositions was highlighted. They called out her desperation, rightfully summarizing her attempts as attempts to ‘stop the bleeding’ among voting blocs traditionally leaning Democratic. The critique hits home, considering how feeble her attempts appear at resurrecting solidarity with these communities.
Drawn from the playbook of empty promises, Harris proposes an economical plan proposing fully forgivable loans up to $20K to Black entrepreneurs, amongst others who ‘have a good idea but don’t have the resources.’ The narrative exudes an overly simplistic understanding of entrepreneurial challenges, choosing to overlook the structural hindrances that persist and instead opting for short-term relief mechanisms.
Drawing from an earlier proposal, the program, to be administered through a new partnership with the Small Business Administration, aims to bolster tax deductions for small businesses from $5,000 to a generous $50,000. The feasibility and judiciousness of these inflated numbers are yet to be examined for their full implications.
Harris poses as a protector of cryptocurrency investors, offering yet another questionable solution that draws skepticism due to her historically fickle stance on the matter. The need to protect digital currency investors feels like a patchwork solution, detached from the wide array of problems the Black community faces, further questioning the sincerity and practicality of her approach.
Her economic agenda emphasizes training, education, and mentorship programs for Black men but falls short of presenting tangible projections on their success. The strategy to invest in more Black male teachers, promoting credentialed opportunities, and strengthening Black leadership programs seem ambitious but vague, raising questions about implementation and sustainability. This feels like another attempt to cast a wide net and catch voters by appealing to as many areas as possible.
Harris’ agenda states that she intends to strengthen the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program to attract and retain Black male teachers, uncertain as to how this appeal correlates with the neglect that the public education system has seen under Democratic leadership. In addition, she leans into health equity, highlighting initiatives focused on prevalent African American health issues like sickle cell disease, diabetes, mental health, and prostate cancer.
Overall, her promises might sound alluring, but they reveal a layer of desperation in her campaign to salvage votes from a demographic showing increased fondness towards the Republican nominee, Donald Trump. It remains to be seen if forgiveness loans, cannabis legalization, and cryptocurrency will be enough to draw the Black vote or if the community will look through the thinly veiled attempt at vote garnering. Will these proposals pan out to be genuine initiatives or forgotten promises? Only time will tell.
Harris’s Desperate Attempt to Woo Black Voters through Hollow Economic Promises appeared first on Real News Now.
About Author
