Quote:You and I know that Kamala Harris was a diversity hire, a choice Joe Biden made to fulfill his promise of choosing a woman to be his Vice President.

Harris was that and more: she would become the Black Vice President as well as the first Vice President of Asian descent. Combine that with her time as a prosecutor, which allies at the time hinted would be how they would go after Trump, and she was the right choice.

Biden, according to reports, was also partial to her because, like him, she had "paid her dues" working her way through the political ladder, including time in the U.S. Senate.

But, that's not an opinion that is widely shared by the left. Some of them may think it, mind you, but they sure as hell don't say it out loud. Among other things, Harris is extremely volatile and doesn't respond to criticism well. Her office is reportedly chaotic, and her temperament isn't exactly helpful.

Imagine my surprise, then, when the Washington Post editors allowed this column to be published on Friday.

At the start of Biden’s term, I was pulling for Harris to do well. She had pizzazz and a reputation for being a tough prosecutor. She had moxie and swagger, and she leaned centrist. There was reason for hope: Criticism from California progressives that she wasn’t adequately attuned to racial-justice issues and sided too often with prosecutors likely proved helpful when she was vetted for the VP spot.

Her performance as second in command has been disappointing, to say the least. Americans have taken note. Though Democrats unsurprisingly like her more than Republicans do, a recent analysis by FiveThirtyEight set her average overall approval rating at just 37.2 percent, among the lowest recorded for a vice president.

The whole column, titled "For the Country’s Sake, Vice President Harris Should Step Aside," is just a brutal explainer as to why Harris is such a drag on Biden's administration and re-election efforts. To actually see the sentence "She was picked because she was Black and female, a combo tantamount to job security," from someone on the left is stunning, even if it's the most accurate statement regarding Harris' job.

And it only gets worse for Harris from there.

There’s no reason to think her ranking would spike were she suddenly promoted to the Oval Office. Instead, most signs point to disaster. This is why I propose with all due respect that Harris step away from the ticket.

This is not a partisan suggestion. I said the same about Sarah Palin in 2008 when it became clear, as I wrote, that she was “out of her league.” No one would have blamed Palin for wanting to spend more time with her family, including a new baby, I said. I ended the column with these words, “Do it for your country.”

Harris could provide her own reasons for moving on. Perhaps she and Biden could a cut a deal for her to become the next attorney general — if he’s reelected. Biden then could tap someone else with executive experience who could reassure voters that the next vice president would be ready to take the reins should events require it. Democrats and Republicans alike would be relieved.

The thing is, if Biden wants to be as successful as possible in 2024, he's going to need a better running mate and future Vice President, but Biden is going to be loyal to those who are loyal to him, so he won't force Harris out. So, the responsible thing would be for Harris to bow out - a thing, I say as objectively as possible, she should do.

But she won't.

Harris has too high an opinion of herself, believes she is owed this, and will not take any suggestion she is doing a bad job. She will not look at the public opinion polling, the news reports coming out of her office, or anything else and think that maybe it's her who is the problem.

Which, for the partisan in me, is just fine. I'm okay with Biden's chances of winning getting hurt by as many things as possible. But I sure do feel bad for Democrats as a whole who are watching their party fall behind to a guy they beat four years ago because an old man with a deteriorating mind and a woman who seems to have never had one running the nation's highest offices into the ground.

Link

(03-17-2024 10:00 AM)CrimsonPhantom Wrote:  

Quote:You and I know that Kamala Harris was a diversity hire, a choice Joe Biden made to fulfill his promise of choosing a woman to be his Vice President.

Harris was that and more: she would become the Black Vice President as well as the first Vice President of Asian descent. Combine that with her time as a prosecutor, which allies at the time hinted would be how they would go after Trump, and she was the right choice.

Biden, according to reports, was also partial to her because, like him, she had "paid her dues" working her way through the political ladder, including time in the U.S. Senate.

But, that's not an opinion that is widely shared by the left. Some of them may think it, mind you, but they sure as hell don't say it out loud. Among other things, Harris is extremely volatile and doesn't respond to criticism well. Her office is reportedly chaotic, and her temperament isn't exactly helpful.

Imagine my surprise, then, when the Washington Post editors allowed this column to be published on Friday.

At the start of Biden’s term, I was pulling for Harris to do well. She had pizzazz and a reputation for being a tough prosecutor. She had moxie and swagger, and she leaned centrist. There was reason for hope: Criticism from California progressives that she wasn’t adequately attuned to racial-justice issues and sided too often with prosecutors likely proved helpful when she was vetted for the VP spot.

Her performance as second in command has been disappointing, to say the least. Americans have taken note. Though Democrats unsurprisingly like her more than Republicans do, a recent analysis by FiveThirtyEight set her average overall approval rating at just 37.2 percent, among the lowest recorded for a vice president.

The whole column, titled "For the Country’s Sake, Vice President Harris Should Step Aside," is just a brutal explainer as to why Harris is such a drag on Biden's administration and re-election efforts. To actually see the sentence "She was picked because she was Black and female, a combo tantamount to job security," from someone on the left is stunning, even if it's the most accurate statement regarding Harris' job.

And it only gets worse for Harris from there.

There’s no reason to think her ranking would spike were she suddenly promoted to the Oval Office. Instead, most signs point to disaster. This is why I propose with all due respect that Harris step away from the ticket.

This is not a partisan suggestion. I said the same about Sarah Palin in 2008 when it became clear, as I wrote, that she was “out of her league.” No one would have blamed Palin for wanting to spend more time with her family, including a new baby, I said. I ended the column with these words, “Do it for your country.”

Harris could provide her own reasons for moving on. Perhaps she and Biden could a cut a deal for her to become the next attorney general — if he’s reelected. Biden then could tap someone else with executive experience who could reassure voters that the next vice president would be ready to take the reins should events require it. Democrats and Republicans alike would be relieved.

The thing is, if Biden wants to be as successful as possible in 2024, he's going to need a better running mate and future Vice President, but Biden is going to be loyal to those who are loyal to him, so he won't force Harris out. So, the responsible thing would be for Harris to bow out - a thing, I say as objectively as possible, she should do.

But she won't.

Harris has too high an opinion of herself, believes she is owed this, and will not take any suggestion she is doing a bad job. She will not look at the public opinion polling, the news reports coming out of her office, or anything else and think that maybe it's her who is the problem.

Which, for the partisan in me, is just fine. I'm okay with Biden's chances of winning getting hurt by as many things as possible. But I sure do feel bad for Democrats as a whole who are watching their party fall behind to a guy they beat four years ago because an old man with a deteriorating mind and a woman who seems to have never had one running the nation's highest offices into the ground.

Link

The only reason they want to replace Harris is so they can bring in Gavin Newsom as her replacement. That way when Biden wins reelection, they can force him out. Newsom becomes President and Aunt Nancy becomes VP.

The editorial was written by Kathleen Parker, who is the kind of house-trained “conservative” that the WaPo is willing to publish. She supported the GOP in the pre-Trump era but basically neutral the last 8-9 years.