And why I am not alone.
First, I want to say I was open to voting for Kamala Harris to be the 47th President of the United States. She’s not Trump. First woman. First Black Woman, First Indian Woman, First Asian Woman. History aside, she has other good qualities, that I think parlay well to being elected President.
But that is not the whole story. After careful observation of what little we’ve been able to see of her, I have decided she should not be in the White House.
And it’s not just me; millions of other on-the fence voters, including independents, NeverTrump Republicans, and even left-leaning Liberals are sitting this one out.
Here is why.
Kamala’s positives
First let’s talk about Kamala Harris’s positive factors.
She’s smart. You don’t get to become the frontrunner nominee to be the next President of the US as a stupid idiot. She is playing to her strengths, and compensating for her weaknesses — perceived or real.
Kamala has not made any political blunders to date — not just as Vice President, but ever. A few bad interviews, sure, but that is not George HW Bush looking at his watch, Chris Christie throwing Tom Kean Jr. under the bus, or Joe Biden’s 2024 debate.
She is photogenic. She pictures well. She dresses well. She LOOKS…Presidential.
Kamala is a great networker. She is ambitious. The Presidency requires this.
She is established within the Democratic Party, enough that there was no serious complaining about her nomination. This is a bit miraculous, if you ask me, but she has shrewdly courted the entire Dem-Establishment into backing her.
Tim Walz was a smart pick for VP. I know he has his learning curve when it comes to the national stage. But so did every other Vice Presidential Pick, from George HW Bush to Al Gore to everyone not named Joe Biden.
Kamala did a good enough job in her debate vs. Trump. She wasn’t Obama sitting on Romney in their 3rd Debate, but she accomplished everything she needed.
Lastly, she represents her demographic and ideology well. She leans into the Black candidate, the Indian candidate (although not lately), and the Woman candidate, very effectively without overdoing it. Some conservatives think this is a minus, but it is an effective temperature-reading of the current state of the country as a whole. Kamala is very politically savvy.
“But TRUMP!!” is not enough
Before I go into my concerns about Kamala as a person and candidate, I want to get one thing clear. I will NOT vote for a President because they are “Not Trump.” Same with “Not GOP.”
And same with “2025 Project” — which is a complete farce of fiction. I’ve actually skimmed through it. It’s entirely unrelated with anything Trump says. Other than vague statements such as we have to secure our border. I get that 2025 Project is a great talking point for the Harris campaign. But it has zero resemblance to the actual Republican platform. None.
Coming back to reality…
Yes, I do believe the Supreme Court could use some balance. I thought Merrick Garland would have made an outstanding Justice. (The fact that he was blocked for almost a year, and then Amy Coney Barrett was rushed through in under two months, is one of the all-time political dirtiest tricks I’ve witnessed) I like Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan. More justices like this please.
Yes, I have concerns about Donald Trump going back to the White House for another 4 years. So do many of Trump’s former top advisors. I have spelled this out in the past.
Yes, the Republican Party is completely disorganized and unable to articulate a single vision or direction for our country. Yes, Trump’s chokehold on the Party is suffocating anything resembling a message.
But the Joe Biden campaign strategy of “How could you even consider voting that Orange guy back in???” was awful. They never touted their accomplishments. The Kamala campaign has followed the same playbook. She even distanced herself from Biden’s agenda. I just think centering a campaign around “But Trump!” and “But 2025!” is terrible strategy.
More Terrible Campaign Strategy
Most analysis about why people don’t want to vote Kamala, comes down to racism and sexism.
Which makes a great cause célèbre, if you want to play victim.
Debunking racism: We’ve had a Black President on the books for two terms.
Debunking sexism: Hillary won the popular vote in 2016.
Do you really think that yelling at somebody undecided, about how racist and sexist they are, is going to inspire them to vote for Kamala?
I was an Obama donor. I met and had a meaningful 1-to-1 conversation with Hillary. Both earned my vote.
So I don’t want to hear any more about Racism or Sexism, when it comes to Kamala.
Kamala continues to avoid any specifics when it comes to policy. On her website, there are long and flowery paragraphs talking about “why.” And nothing at all talking about “how.”
All “excitement” about Kamala is AstroTurfed. She was a VERY unpopular Vice President. And now she is the hero and savior of the United States? It’s not a grass roots transformation.
Last, Kamala isn’t really campaigning. I agree with Obama here: how many speeches did he give, around the country, not just for himself but to help elect a Democratic Congress? How many speeches did Hillary Clinton give, for the same ends? Now how many speeches is Kamala giving? How many interviews? Why isn’t she on Lex Friedman or Joe Rogan? Obama went on Bill O’Reilly. How many candidates is Kamala openly and effectively supporting for Congress? If the election is THAT important, then why is she limiting herself to expensive donor dinners? This is not aligned with the spirit of the Democratic party.
Kamala was appointed to the nomination, not elected
1968 called, and they want their smoke-filled rooms back.
I was born after 1968. But I have read stories. Due to Lyndon Johnson calling out late in the game, and due to Bobby Kennedy’s assassination after winning the California Primary, the Democratic Party huddled together, off camera, to decide Hubert Humphrey would be the Nominee. Never mind that Humphrey won not a single Primary Delegate.
Fast forward to 2024. Joe Biden called out late in the game, and the Democratic Party huddled together, off camera, to decide Kamala Harris would be the Nominee. Never mind that Harris won not a single Primary or Caucus Delegate.
Not only did Kamala earn zero Delegates in 2024, she also earned zero Delegates in 2020. Democratic Party voters don’t like her.
Does anybody else see a problem with this?
Democracy is under threat…from Democrats
Democracy is letting the people decide their leaders, and their country’s direction.
At least Donald Trump won his nomination through a democratic process. In fact, he won against his Party Elite’s wishes.
Today’s Democratic Party establishment have completely thrown out “democratic process,” and decided who they want to be the nominee. Don’t like it? Tough…you must be a MAGA racist and sexist.
This all comes after Joe Biden was the ONLY nominee during the Democratic primaries. Not a single debate of Biden vs Robert F. Kennedy Jr., or Dean Phillips — who said he agreed with Biden’s policy 100%, but Biden was too old and incapable of running again. Dean Phillips was absolutely correct. So why was Dean Phillips not given a chance to be evaluated by the People?
Joe Biden has been mentally infermed for most of this year, and certainly less than 100% for some time before that. In his mental absence, who is actually calling the shots? Nobody knows.
If Kamala’s appearances are all staged and choreographed, then if she gets elected, then who is actually calling the shots? Nobody knows.
I have a huge problem with any party that removes all sense or trace of Democracy and visibility about how things operate.
Kamala is more Socialite than Stateswoman
Here is a summary of Kamala Harris’s resume:
- She went to Howard University law school, ranked 130th out of 196 US law schools, where she graduated without honors
- She first came to public awareness through dating Montel Williams
- She first came to political office through dating Willie Brown, 31 years her senior
- She was appointed to two state boards by Willie Brown
- Willie Brown introduced Kamala to the entire San Francisco elite, which became the backbone of her political career in California
- In 1998, Harris was appointed to San Francisco Assistant DA
- In 2002, Harris ran for San Francisco DA, came in 2nd place, then won the runoff
- In 2010, Harris ran for Attorney General of California, and won
- In 2016, Harris ran in the U.S. Senate special election to replace Barbera Boxer. Her main competitor was Loretta Sanchez, and the entire debate was whether or not to have a Black person or a Latino person in office
- In 2020, Joe Biden chose Kamala Harris to be his Vice Presidential nominee, after saying he specifically wanted a Black Woman to be his running mate. She was seen as the safe pick over Susan Rice
- The Democratic Party chose Kamala Harris to be their Presidential nominee to replace Joe Biden, less than 48 hours after Joe Biden announced he would not be running in 2024.
While I do not begrudge Kamala’s constant and evolutional path toward the top, I can’t help but think of her as the ultimate Party insider. She has been called a Socialite with a Law Degree. Whatever her gifts behind closed doors and at private events, there have never been examples of these gifts on camera.
Please contrast Kamala’s progression versus Barack Obama, who bucked the entire party agenda, ran against Hillary Clinton who had near unanimous “superdelegate” support, and fought the system until the Democratic Party finally backed down when an overwhelming majority of the PEOPLE chose Obama for who they wanted to be their President.
Kamala has not shown any real leadership qualities
Photogenic picture-taking is not leadership.
As Vice President, Kamala Harris’s office experienced 92% turnover in staff after three years. Words used to describe the environment include “dysfunctional,” “chaotic,” and “tense.” “People are thrown under the bus from the very top, there are short fuses and it’s an abusive environment,” said one anonymous insider.
If Trump was such a legendarily Horrible Boss to work for, then why vote in a Democrat version of the same?
As Vice President, Kamala Harris was tapped to spearhead efforts to address the US-Mexico border crisis. She wasn’t given the title of “Tzar,” but she was the publicly announced point. She did not actually visit that border for months, and her justification was, “Well I haven’t been to Europe either!” Which is a line I would have expected from Sarah Palin. The Border Patrol Union blasted Kamala Harris’s inaction on the US/Mexico border, after more than two years of still doing nothing about the situation.
As Senator for 4 years, Kamala Harris authored Zero bills that passed. Not one. She co-sponsored and signed onto several bills authored by others. She also authored a few which had no chance of passing. Why was Kamala Harris not able to pass a single bill, after 4 years in the Senate?
As Attorney General, Kamala Harris largely went after marijuana offenders…in California. She fought abolition of the death penalty. She fought the early release of prisoners after the US Supreme Court ruled inhumane prison conditions violated the constitution. She pushed for state-level anti-truancy measures which arrested and harshly punished parents.
Kamala Harris did give speeches supporting abortion rights, DACA, and family reunification after Trump’s (actually Jeff Sessions’) childhood separation strategy (which I consider the biggest atrocity of the Trump administration). But other than giving stump speeches, none of which were memorable, what has she actually done?
In a leader, you typically want somebody with a track record of accomplishment. Not just being a caricature.
Kamala’s lack of Authenticity
One of the reasons many people sat out Hillary Clinton in 2016, was that she was “inauthentic.”
Having met Hillary in person, and seeing her off-camera twice, I would disagree with this. I think Hillary just felt awkward with the camera on. But the reputation stuck.
Kamala, on the other hand, is extremely comfortable being shot by a camera, and is still…inauthentic. I’m not going to harp on her laugh, but her answers are shallow — beyond the usual politician shallow. This cannot match who she is behind closed doors.
Less than one month before the election, we still don’t know anything about Kamala as a person. Who was she, the first 36 hours after Biden told his inner circle he was stepping down? Who was she, when she interviewed for Biden’s VP role? There is a whole level of assertiveness, and effective communication, that she has not shown in public. That is the Kamala I would like to see.
What does she care about? What is important to her? Who is she as a person? We don’t see any of that. How does she FEEL about…anything?
Besides securing her own promotions.
Which makes me not trust her.
Kamala demonstrates only one skill
Kamala Harris does what she needs to do, so she can continue to move up.
She is a Machiavellian ladder-climber.
Unfortunately, she is very good at this skill. And the United States could very well suffer as a result.
My biggest problem with Kamala Harris is she hasn’t demonstrated ability to do much else. She has no real governing experience. She has no “the buck stops here” record. She has no leadership successes. And we want to vote her to be head of a 350 million person nation, and the leader of the free world?
Yes, she looks Presidential. But Warren Harding was another unknown, who also won solely due to inside Party connections and because he “looked Presidential.” And he was not only a complete disaster of a President, but also a horrible human being. But nobody knew that, until it was too late.
Alternatives to Kamala
The first alternative is not to vote. Just stay home.
The second alternative is to vote for other roles, but not President.
The third alternative is to vote 3rd Party. It’s not a vote for Trump. It’s not a wasted vote. This is not a binary election.
There are three candidates, who I feel are worthy of consideration:
- Cornel West, progressive activist. Democratic Socialist. Populist. A real Lefty. The most Bernie-like of any candidate. This is someone who actually marched in Civil Rights demonstrations — in the 60s. His criticism of the Democratic Party is spot on.
- Jill Stein, Green Party. Physician. Not sure any intro needs to be added. But I question how effective she has been in enacting Green-friendly change. At least Ralph Nader had a track record.
- Chase Oliver, Libertarian Party. Left-leaning, unlike most Libertarians whom lean Right. I have mixed opinions and experiences with Libertarians. They talk a good game, but their combination of policies don’t always add up.
Note I am not including Right-leaning candidates, such as Robert F. Kennedy who has thrown his towel in with Trump.
Conclusion
There is so much more I could reference — flip-flopping on important issues, her husband’s misogyny, losing the Teamsters, refusal to reach out to independent and Republican voters, Blaccents, and lack of transparency about ANYTHING while VP.
To sum up, Kamala Harris is an undemocratically-nominated & propped up Party insider, the exact opposite of transparent with the people of the United States, and quite possibly a psychopath.
Send a message to the Democratic Party, to listen to We the People: Kamala does not deserve our votes.
