William Henry Harrison, who served as the ninth U.S. president, happens to be the last leader of the country with a British birthright and the inaugural member of the Whig Party to secure the presidency. An infamous reputation trails him due to his long-winded inaugural speech lasting nearly two hours, and the brevity of his tenure, marking him as the first president to pass away during his term, a mere 31 days after assuming office.
Harrison carries the distinction of being the final politician to experience defeat in his initial presidential run, only to secure a victory in the subsequent one. He shares this pattern with the likes of Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson. Notably, Richard Nixon suffered a loss but earned victory much further down the timeline, while Grover Cleveland and Donald Trump exhibited a win-lose-win track record.
Those who, similar to Harrison, lost their first electoral race and chose to run again in the following election invariably faced defeat once more. This untoward pattern was also evident in the political journeys of Democrat Adlai Stevenson and Republican Thomas Dewey, who both suffered twin defeats. Notably, Henry Clay and William Jennings Bryan endured defeat after three consecutive runs. It’s an undeniable truth that voters generally display an aversion to defeat.
The fact that Vice President Kamala Harris, after routinely dodging rumors of her running for governor in California, recently confirmed her intent not to run, has naturally led to speculation that she may have set her sights on a presidential race. This, despite known unfavorable dynamics within the Democratic Party, which currently suffers from dismal popularity; the extent of their unpopularity is nearly triple that of the GOP.
The Democratic party’s favorability deficit of a worrying 30 points is at its nadir in the past three-and-a-half decades. This unfavorable disposition arises chiefly from Democratic disillusionment with the party’s own missteps, such as losing the election to Trump and their subsequent failure to provide much-needed opposition to his administration.
Harris herself represents the frustrating dichotomy within the Democratic party. This dissatisfaction is hardly uniform in nature. For progressives, the dissatisfaction stems from the perception of the party’s inadequate commitment to the fight. On the other hand, for the more moderate Democrats, the party’s pivot towards cultural warfare and identity politics creates disillusionment due to a perceived swing too far to the left.
A common thread that ties these factions together is their shared, earnest desire to secure a win. Oddly, Harris was floated as a potential nominee for 2024 chiefly due to her identity as a diversity pick. Biden made an unequivocal declaration that his running mate will be a woman and, subsequently, a woman of color.
Harris, thus, isn’t facing critique for her race or gender, but rather, her inability to broaden the coalition of Democratic voters. To turn the tides of political fortune, the Democrats require a figure who could entice Trump supporters to their side.
Unpalatable as it may be, she didn’t lose due to inadequate Democratic voter turnout; quite the contrary, it was primarily due to her lack of appeal to the evolving electorate. Her speeches, steeped in pedantic rhetoric, often left her sounding more like a college dean overseeing a modest liberal arts campus.
Leaving aside her stance on reproductive rights, her beliefs appear as though they were crafted in a focus group, showcasing an artificiality at a time when voters were desperate for genuine, impassioned leadership. To add to her woes, Harris’s adherence to Biden’s directive to not distance herself from him reflected a lack of political judiciousness.
Choosing to guest on Stephen Colbert’s ‘The Late Show’ for her first interview post-office significantly emphasized her shortcomings. While this decision catered to her existing, ideologically aligned supporters, it did little to broaden her support base, which is a crucial requirement for victory.
Regrettably, if the Democrats choose to nominate her again, history may remember her merely as an answer to a trivia game question, and it certainly wouldn’t be related to her ascent to the designation of the 48th president of the United States. Observers of the political spectrum would probably accord her little more than that.
The post Kamala Harris: A Repeat Performance Destined for Defeat? appeared first on Real News Now.
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