Sunday, July 28, 2024

The PR machine for Harris.


What a difference a week makes, huh?

CarrotStudios | Deposit Photos

Last week, I went to the movies, looking for a glimmer of hope after President Biden dropped out of the race for a second term. This week, I'm all in for Vice President Kamala Harris. 

The whiplash-inducing turnaround in the mood of Democrats across the country has been striking. And it happened a lot faster than I expected it would. I believe that's due to a masterful public relations plan by the Democratic Party's marketing team -- an effort that caught the Republican Party wholly unprepared.

Look at this timeline, you guys:

  • Saturday, 7/13: Somebody shoots at former President Trump during an outdoor rally in Pennsylvania, nicking his ear, killing a member of the audience, and injuring others. (Cue the "God saved him for a reason" chorus.)
  • Thursday, 7/18: Trump accepts the Republican Party's nomination for president.
  • Thursday, 7/18 (same day): Major news outlets, including Forbes, report that Biden is beginning to think about dropping out. 
  • Sunday, 7/21: Biden announces he's dropping out and endorses Harris. His staff finds out one minute before his announcement, according to NPR. But c'mon, look at the rest of the timeline!
  • Sunday, 7/21: Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State and 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton endorse Harris.
  • Sunday night, 7/21: 40,000 Black women get on a Zoom call to support Harris.
  • Monday, 7/22: 20,000 Black men do the same.
  • Monday, 7/22 (same day): Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi endorses Harris.
  • Tuesday, 7/23: Current House Speaker Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer endorse Harris.
  • Wednesday, 7/24: Axios runs a story about how the Divine Nine, a coalition of Black sororities and fraternities, is working to support Harris's candidacy with voter registration and education drives. Harris is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, one of the Divine Nine. 
  • Wednesday evening, 7/24: President Biden addresses the nation to explain why he's dropping out.
  • Thursday, 7/25: 160,000 White women get on a Zoom call to support Harris, breaking Zoom.
  • Friday, 7/26: As the Republicans begin to sniff huffily that Harris doesn't have former President Obama's support, bam, both Barack and Michelle Obama call Harris to endorse her. The call was obviously staged for social media, but the endorsement is real.
  • Today: Former Vice President and 2000 Democratic presidential nominee Al Gore endorses Harris.
  • Tomorrow night, Monday, 7/29: There's a Zoom call scheduled for "White Dudes for Harris".
Just look at that list. There's been something every day. And along with it were the reports about the cash haul: $200 million, as of today, according to the Harris campaign, which says two-thirds of those donors are new. In addition, 170,000 people have signed up to volunteer for Harris. In a week

It'll be tough for the campaign to keep that momentum going for the next three weeks, until the Democratic National Convention starts on Monday, August 19th. But the Democrats had already planned a pre-convention delegate roll call for Wednesday, August 7th, to make sure their candidate made it onto the Ohio ballot (long story). We are also in midst of the dramalamadingdong surrounding Harris's running mate: not only who it will be*, but whether she will announce it this week or wait 'til the convention. All this guarantees the Harris campaign will keep generating headlines.

In response, Trump's campaign first appeared to be flummoxed. It apparently never occurred to them that Biden would actually drop out, so they never developed a Plan B. And their early efforts at coming up with one have been, to say the least, problematic. At least one member of Congress floated the idea of Harris being a "DEI hire", but then congressional leaders told them to quit it

Trump himself -- never happy when he's not the center of attention -- told a Turning Point Action group Friday night that if they vote this year and he wins, "It'll be fixed. It'll be fine. You won't have to vote anymore, my beautiful Christians." Which of course prompted outrage from Democrats and the usual gaslighting from Republicans that what he said isn't actually what he meant.

Trump is also having fun with Harris's first name, mispronouncing it as many ways as he can think of. Maybe today's political reporters are too young to remember when the first President Bush used the same tactic on Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. 

But overall, Trump's ability to recapture the spotlight seems to be faltering. Here he thought he'd just cruise to victory in November as the Chosen One; now he's got a real fight on his hands. With no plan. And just 100 days to go!

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*The Washington Post has published a quiz so we could all try our hands at picking a Democratic vice presidential candidate. Here's a free link

If you care: I got Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, who is actually my second choice; my first is Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, mostly due to geography. Kelly is strong because he's ex-military and a former astronaut, plus his wife, Gabby Giffords, had to resign from Congress after she was shot in the head by a constituent. And Arizona is a battleground state. But it's also a Western state, and usually campaigns go for geographical diversity. Shapiro is also from a battleground state -- one with more electoral college votes than Arizona -- and he has been good at reaching across the aisle. Plus the geographical balance is better.

I'd love to see her pick Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, if only to watch him wipe the floor with Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance in a debate. But if you think the "DEI hire" comments are bad now, just think about how loud they'd be with a gay man on the same ticket as a Black woman.

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