William Henry Harrison, remembered for having the shortest tenure as a U.S. president, also held the distinction of being the last leader born as a British subject. His lengthy inaugural address, stretching close to two hours, still sits in record books. Until his era, Harrison, a Whig Party stalwart, was among a few others to lose a presidential election, only to make an impressive comeback in the subsequent one. The political path treaded by Harrison presents a stark contrast to that of Kamala Harris, and not in a good way.
Harris, who recently spurned whispers of a gubernatorial run in California, seems angling for a rerun of a presidential race. However, history is not on her side, nor popular sentiment. Looking back, figures like Adlai Stevenson and Thomas Dewey from both Democratic and Republican parties have seen repeated defeats. Even the likes of Henry Clay and William Jennings Bryan, despite running thrice, couldn’t break the historical pattern. For Harris, the tale of such ‘persistent losers’ doesn’t bode well.
The Democratic party, home to Harris, seems to have lost its sheen with a ghastly negative favorability currently pegging at about 30 points. This three-decade low in popularity is nearly triple that of the Republicans. Steeped in their loss to Trump and the party’s lackluster efforts to present a unified opposition, Democrats are understandably upset.
It would be unfair, however, to single-handedly blame Harris for the predicament Democrats face. In fact, she is simply the embodiment of the party’s internal rift and the consequent disenchantment. This discontent is not homogenous; while the progressives beckon a more combative stance, the centrists find galling the party’s perceived shift towards extreme left on socio-cultural issues and identity politics.
The one unifying factor amidst these fraying ends is the raring desire to gain victory. Harris’ pivotal position as a potential 2024 nominee rests primarily on her being the tick box for diversity, a promise made candidly by Biden. He had disclosed his intent of choosing a female, preferably of African-American descent, as his running mate.
But to attribute Harris’ problems solely to her race or gender would be a disservice. Instead, it is her inability to captivate the voters and widen the Democratic coalition that proves fatal. A successful democratic candidate is one who can sway Trump’s supporters, and Harris failed to strike a chord.
Harris didn’t falter due to low Democratic turnout, it was her lack of appeal to an evolving electorate. Her rhetoric, more suitable for a dean at a liberal arts college, did not resonate with the masses. Instead of offering raw authenticity, her convictions seemed to be carefully curated products of focus groups.
Worsening the situation was her reluctant acceptance of Biden’s directive to not maintain a critical distance from him. As appears, being tied to Biden’s coattails might not be the ideal position for someone aiming to win hearts. This highlights one among the many failings of Biden’s administration.
Her decision to choose ‘The Late Show’ with Stephen Colbert for her first interview post-office was predictable, basking in the host’s ideological leanings. Making such choices further isolates Democrats from the broader electorate they should be trying to capture.
Such actions are just appetizers for a crowd already committed to the Colbert ideology, thereby missing the mark with the voters that Democrats truly need to win over. And that’s precisely why if she is chosen to run once more, it’s likely that she will only become trivia fodder.
Notably, the question she’ll answer won’t be, ‘Who was the 48th president of the United States?’. Thus, all signs point to the ill-advised strategy of pushing an unimpactful candidate in the form of Harris, who continues to fail to connect with the wider demographic.
At this challenging juncture, the Democrats’ insistence on fighting the ‘wrong’ battles under the guise of culture war and identity politics is certainly questionable. This stance, hugely championed by Harris, has only led to the party’s faltering appeal.
Moreover, the party’s monumental misstep to appoint Biden, amidst promises of diversity no less, only deepens their crisis. His administration’s apparent inability to form a formidable opposition to Trump only further underscores their ineptitude.
Biden and Harris are key players in a Democratic party disoriented with its internal rifts, uncertain strategies, and lost popularity. Their repeated inability to connect with the changing voter demographics brings to sharp relief the party’s downward spiral.
In essence, it appears that the Democrats, led astray by Biden and Harris, are in dire need of a course correction. Without a significant shift in its approach, the party risks becoming obsolete, if the historically dismal support and low success rates of attempted comebacks serve as any indication.
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