Staff Reports
With President Biden’s recent pivot from the political stage, Vice President Kamala Harris has stepped into the limelight, maneuvering to differentiate herself from her boss, whose approval ratings are floating somewhere near the depths of the Mariana Trench. Dubbed a part of the “Biden-Harris administration,” Harris still clings to Biden’s coattails on policy, despite making a show of redefining herself as a tough prosecutor and even taking a stab at the TikTok star persona.
Harris is attempting to revitalize her image as she races toward the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, hoping to consolidate the support of party bigwigs and deep-pocketed donors. She’s rolling into this campaign with the same trusty crew and campaign apparatus that has been loyal to Biden. While historically a party loyalist, Harris may yet carve out her own policy territory as she revs up her campaign engines, especially after Biden’s abrupt decision to exit the race.
Washington Examiner: The early clues on how far Harris will stray from Biden’s legacy https://t.co/QsePvUA1I0
— Ian Hansen 🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@IanHansenFeed) July 28, 2024
Differences in their approaches were evident during a recent meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. While both Biden and Harris issued similar statements, Harris was notably more aggressive in rebuking Israel’s handling of the situation in Gaza, claiming that silence in the face of suffering was unacceptable. Meanwhile, former President Trump didn’t hold back his criticism of Harris’s perceived disrespect towards Israel, quipping about how her actions might alienate Jewish voters.
On the domestic front, Harris has been sticking closely to Biden’s script, advocating for the all-too-familiar Democratic causes. Her speeches echo policies that sound like they were churned out under Biden’s supervision, pushing for voting rights reforms, gun control, and student loan forgiveness that could just as easily have rolled off Biden’s tongue—just perhaps, with a sprinkle of different language. While this may resonate with the Democratic base, it raises eyebrows among conservatives who see these proposals as an extension of the same failed agenda.
Harris’s campaign strategy leans heavily on her legal background, framing the race against Trump as a classic “prosecutor versus felon” showdown, despite the fact that Biden had already introduced Trump’s legal issues into the mix. And while she may argue her case more compellingly than Biden when it comes to hot-button issues like abortion, her Californian roots leave her at a disadvantage while connecting with swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin—states that historically lean towards the blue collar philosophies championed by “Scranton Joe.”
As for Trump’s camp, they’re not expecting much in terms of a transformative shift if Harris becomes the nominee. Trump’s spokeswoman has remarked that Harris will likely embody the same weaknesses and policy failures as her predecessor. According to her assessments, a vote for Kamala equals an endorsement of rampant crime, soaring inflation, border chaos, and the ongoing turmoil around the globe.
In the grand scheme of things, despite some attempts to forge her own identity, Harris has largely fallen in line with Biden’s policies since taking office. Even when pressed about whether she would pursue her own policy agenda, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre pointed to their joint accomplishments, as if to say they’ve been winning all the wrong battles together. Harris seems to be taking the long road around the political landscape but may find that without redefining her ties to the President and the liberal agenda, she risks leading herself into the same popularity quagmire he’s currently stuck in.
