KAMALA THE GLADIATOR

After weeks of hesitation, the Democratic Party strategists made their decision. In a 24-hour commando operation, Biden was "unplugged" on July 21, his replacement chosen the next day, and quickly inaugurated by the party elite, securing tens of millions of campaign dollars. The anti-Trump media, led by the New York Times and Washington Post, immediately praised her as a heroine of democracy and an advocate for women and minorities. Kamalamania is in full swing. Democrats are relieved and hopeful again.

Swift action was necessary. Since his disastrous debate performance against Trump on June 27, Biden had become a liability. Trump, meanwhile, had become a hero of sorts after the failed assassination attempt on him on July 15. Panic spread within the Democratic Party: Biden's expected defeat on November 4 would inevitably lead to the downfall of many Democratic lawmakers in both the House and Senate. This was unacceptable to party leaders like Nancy Pelosi, Charles Schumer, and Hakeem Jeffries. Within hours, they rallied Democratic lawmakers and even the Clintons and Obamas, though the latter took eight days to respond. Obama held little regard for his former Vice President, preferring Hillary to face Trump in 2016. As for Kamala Harris, his opinion matched that of many Washington insiders: ambitious, as harsh as Hillary but far less intelligent, and willing to leverage her mixed Indo-Jamaican heritage.

As California's Attorney General, she had attempted a presidential run in 2016 before quickly dropping out after a failed campaign, but caught Biden's attention. Biden needed a woman of color who wouldn't overshadow him. Kamala fit the bill, adding a knack for gaffes and a talent for delivering empty phrases in a serious tone. For example: "The passage of time is of great significance" or "Ukraine is a country in Europe. It has a neighbor, a larger country, Russia. Russia has decided to swallow Ukraine, which is smaller."

Biden assigned her a toxic issue, Trump's pet cause but one he avoided: illegal Latin American immigration at the Mexican border. Harris took it on with little success. Her supporters now claim she built her international experience there, though it was limited to a single appearance at the Munich Security Conference last February, where she read a prepared speech from a teleprompter. Europeans, panicked by Trump but aware of Kamala's inexperience, are already backing Harris, hoping she'll follow Biden's Euro-Atlantic stance. Netanyahu, after their frosty Washington meeting last week, knows Harris would be less favorable to him, more sensitive to the pro-Gaza movement in Black and Muslim U.S. communities.

Now, Harris and Trump are neck and neck in the polls. Experts think Kamala can't win, especially with Biden's mediocre record both domestically and internationally. But they also say Trump is his own worst enemy. And that he could lose...

By Pierre Lellouche

Tribune VA, 28/07/2024