By the time Biden dropped out, yes, she was really the only choice, logistically. I think at that point, 3 months ago, there was basically nothing the dems could have done to have won this. They could have made it closer, but any real shot at a candidate people liked, would have needed to have gotten spooled up a year ago, at minimum, two years ago ideally.
The DNC shares so much blame for overall strategy of the last decade+, but the decision for Biden to insist on aiming for a 2nd term the whole time, despite pressure, and only cave when the saw just how grim those final projections really were, is mostly his, personally.
It would make sense if joe were popular, but he really wasnt. Thinking they could just copy/paste his agenda on to a different person and win was deeply unserious, just like leftists kept screaming every damn day until this morning
The only time she distanced to herself from Biden was on things that were objectively unpopular, like not raising taxes as much on rich people.
I already see some of the rhetoric saying that Kamala was too far left. I think the only lesson that the DNC is going to take from this election, is that they need to go even further right. When in reality, pointing out how weird it is that Republican politicians are so concerned about children's genitals is an effective strategy, that was only stopped because Kamala Harris has a bipartisanship fetish.
While I'm definitely afraid the DNC will go that way, I've been surprised by how many normal people I see not getting that out of the election on libs.world or Reddit. Sure, there's the occasional post still blaming Arabs or Latinos whatever, but I see a lot of anger pointed at the Dems instead that can be harnessed. This may turn out to be a great teaching and radicalizing moment if socialists take advantage of it now.
I think the fact that he won the popular vote means that the regular scapegoats they were planning on don't work. There was clearly not enough third party voters and they lost votes they had in 2020. It could just be sexism, but I think a lot of people have the feeling something else happened, something related to the campaign, or I wouldn't be seeing so much anger and disappointment directed at the Dems.
There was also the component of controlling the campaign war chest and infrastructure
Harris could just hop in the driver seat bc she already was on the ticket.
She actually had juice right after the switch, then proceeded to just piss it away over the next few weeks
All she had to do was distance herself from Biden with some meaningful policies but it turns out she's really bad at this... Which nobody could have foreseen given her primary performance
At the time, she was the best candidate because she was the only one with the national name brand. The problem was that she didn't run a real primary, because if there was an open primary she might not have won.
The more pertinent thing might be that the candidate they were anointing historically had not a shadow of a chance at winning. Primaries aren't a terribly good way of seeing who would do best in the general, but if you're doing that cataclysmically bad, you probably shouldn't just be handed the nomination anyway. It's sincerely like they were trying to lose.
The way you win elections in the US is getting your side to show up on election day. There's so much voter disenfranchisement and suppression you need to campaign with those factors in mind. You're absolutely right Harris' failures in the primary should have been a red flag. You have to get people excited and mobilized, while making it easier for them to cast their ballots.
That she dropped out so early was a bad sign for her campaign. Dems either haven't learned a got damn thing since Obama or they're doing it intentionally.
Honestly, I'm still fishing out my lib brain worms, but the VP taking over the campaign made sense to me regardless of how she primaried.
By the time Biden dropped out, yes, she was really the only choice, logistically. I think at that point, 3 months ago, there was basically nothing the dems could have done to have won this. They could have made it closer, but any real shot at a candidate people liked, would have needed to have gotten spooled up a year ago, at minimum, two years ago ideally.
The DNC shares so much blame for overall strategy of the last decade+, but the decision for Biden to insist on aiming for a 2nd term the whole time, despite pressure, and only cave when the saw just how grim those final projections really were, is mostly his, personally.
Yet another hubrisic liberal elite refusing to take action on the overall political project, fucking future generations.
It would make sense if joe were popular, but he really wasnt. Thinking they could just copy/paste his agenda on to a different person and win was deeply unserious, just like leftists kept screaming every damn day until this morning
She easily could've separated herself more from him, but very purposefully didn't.
The only time she distanced to herself from Biden was on things that were objectively unpopular, like not raising taxes as much on rich people.
I already see some of the rhetoric saying that Kamala was too far left. I think the only lesson that the DNC is going to take from this election, is that they need to go even further right. When in reality, pointing out how weird it is that Republican politicians are so concerned about children's genitals is an effective strategy, that was only stopped because Kamala Harris has a bipartisanship fetish.
While I'm definitely afraid the DNC will go that way, I've been surprised by how many normal people I see not getting that out of the election on libs.world or Reddit. Sure, there's the occasional post still blaming Arabs or Latinos whatever, but I see a lot of anger pointed at the Dems instead that can be harnessed. This may turn out to be a great teaching and radicalizing moment if socialists take advantage of it now.
I think the fact that he won the popular vote means that the regular scapegoats they were planning on don't work. There was clearly not enough third party voters and they lost votes they had in 2020. It could just be sexism, but I think a lot of people have the feeling something else happened, something related to the campaign, or I wouldn't be seeing so much anger and disappointment directed at the Dems.
This is the day after though, I expect the narratives to consolidate and coalesce over the next few days.
True. Right now they're still reeling, which is why now I think is the time to spread our messages and press them.
Fair
There was also the component of controlling the campaign war chest and infrastructure
Harris could just hop in the driver seat bc she already was on the ticket.
She actually had juice right after the switch, then proceeded to just piss it away over the next few weeks
All she had to do was distance herself from Biden with some meaningful policies but it turns out she's really bad at this... Which nobody could have foreseen given her primary performance
At the time, she was the best candidate because she was the only one with the national name brand. The problem was that she didn't run a real primary, because if there was an open primary she might not have won.
The more pertinent thing might be that the candidate they were anointing historically had not a shadow of a chance at winning. Primaries aren't a terribly good way of seeing who would do best in the general, but if you're doing that cataclysmically bad, you probably shouldn't just be handed the nomination anyway. It's sincerely like they were trying to lose.
The way you win elections in the US is getting your side to show up on election day. There's so much voter disenfranchisement and suppression you need to campaign with those factors in mind. You're absolutely right Harris' failures in the primary should have been a red flag. You have to get people excited and mobilized, while making it easier for them to cast their ballots.
That she dropped out so early was a bad sign for her campaign. Dems either haven't learned a got damn thing since Obama or they're doing it intentionally.
They carried Biden across the primary finish line so they never had to be held to account by voters. Trojan horsed Kamala in using Joe's incumbency.