Editorial

Kamala Takes the Torch

President Joe Biden sealed his statesman credentials July 21 when he announced he was ending his re-election campaign and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris to succeed him.

Biden had been quietly mulling pleas from members of Congress to consider stepping aside after he struggled to put his campaign back on course following the June 27 debate, in which he was unable to respond cogently to Donald Trump’s cascade of lies.

After three weeks of insisting he was still in the race to win, Biden stunned his staff Sunday, July 21, with his announcement to them at 12:45 p.m. Central time that he was suspending his campaign to devote his full attention to finishing his term in January. Rather than let the news leak out, Biden put the announcement on X (formerly Twitter) a minute later. At 1:13 p.m. President Biden tweeted his endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him when the Democratic national convention names the party’s presidential ticket Aug. 19-22.

Harris paid tribute to Biden’s “extraordinary leadership as President of the United States and for his decades of service to our country. His remarkable legacy of accomplishment is unmatched in modern American history, surpassing the legacy of many Presidents who have served two terms in office … With this selfless and patriotic act, President Biden is doing what he has done throughout his life of service: putting the American people and our country above everything else.”

She promised, “I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party—and unite our nation—to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda.”

She added, “We have 107 days until Election Day. Together, we will fight. And together, we will win.”

The hopes of news media who were jonesing for a chaotic Democratic convention were dashed when Democrats reacted to Biden’s withdrawal from the race with a sense of relief, and enthusiasm for Harris. Party leaders — including the leading potential challengers for the nomination — quickly coalesced behind the vice president.

She gained the support of the Congressional Progressive Caucus political action committee, which is co-chaired by Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), and Jamie Raskin (D-Md.)

Within hours, major unions endorsed Harris, including Service Employees International Union, United Farm Workes, the American Federation of Teachers and the National Union of Healthcare Workers, which highlighted Harris’ strong advocacy for reproductive justice. United Steelworkers, Communications Workers of America, United Food and Commercial Workers, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees followed, and the AFL-CIO endorsed Harris Monday night.

Donations poured into the newly renamed Harris for President campaign. In 24 hours after Biden endorsed Harris, her campaign received $81 million in donations, mainly from small donors through ActBlue, including 43,000 new recurring donors. And that is on top of the $91 million Biden had raised, which should now go to Harris.

The excitement over Harris’ entry also apparently has benefitted other Democratic candidates, as ActBlue recorded $107.7 million in total donations to Democrats the day after Harris entered the race.

While there are calls for an “open convention” to let all comers engage in a free-for-all for the presidential nomination, Democratic convention rules simply call on delegates to “in all good conscience reflect the sentiments of those who elected them,” Ben Kamisar noted at NBC News. And since Biden’s campaign played a big role in picking the 3,886 delegates he won in the primaries, choosing supporters for their loyalty, Biden’s endorsement is key.

Harris needs votes of 1,976 delegates to secure the nomination and The Associated Press reported 2,471 delegates from at least three dozen states had endorsed Harris as of Monday night, July 22.

Harris’ way was largely cleared when California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, two potential rivals for the nomination, endorsed the vice president, with Whitmer accepting the post of Harris’ campaign co-chair.

“She’s a former prosecutor, a champion for reproductive freedom, and I know she’s got Michigan’s back,” said Whitmer, whose support could be critical in a key swing state. “That’s in stark contrast to Donald Trump, a convicted felon who stokes violence, overturned Roe, and drove our economy into the ground last time he was in the White House.” Whitmer added she is not interested in being vice president.

If Biden’s delegates to the Democratic convention follow his lead, it sets up a general election between Harris, a former prosecutor who has done a creditable job in three and a half years as vice president, against Trump, a 78-year-old convicted felon in obvious cognitive decline, as was displayed in his rambling, incoherent 92-minute acceptance speech at the Republican national convention July 18.

Republican misleaders attempted to distract from the transition to a Harris candidacy, demanding that Biden quit the presidency and threatening to sue to keep Harris off state ballots. But after their embrace of Trump, who has been convicted of 34 felonies, and found liable for rape as well as fraud in his businesses, the Republican misleaders can sit in the corner and think about what they’ve done.

It was beyond irony that the RNC had “Law and Order Night” at their convention July 17. Trump is awaiting sentencing in September for his felonies in Manhattan. Among the honorees of the evening were Peter Navarro, who received a standing ovation after he arrived from federal prison after serving four months for defying a subpoena from the House Jan. 6 committee to testify and turn over documents requested by the committee. Among the attendees was Paul Manafort, Trump’s 2016 campaign chairman, who was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison in 2019 as part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Trump pardoned Manafort in 2020, shortly before leaving office.

Don’t forget that charges are still pending against Trump in federal court in D.C. for Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election results, including his involvement in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol; 10 criminal charges in state district court in Atlanta, Ga., related to his attempts to overturn Georgia election results; and 40 counts of mishandling classified documents in federal court in Florida, even after Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the charges July 15. Trump’s favorite judge ruled that Jack Smith’s appointment as special counsel was unconstitutional. Smith can appeal that dismissal to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

If the Supreme Court won’t let credible charges against defendant Donald Trump go to trial, the judgment is left up to the voters. And Kamala Harris is the right person to present the case to voters. — JMC

From The Progressive Populist, August 15, 2024

Populist.com