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Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign has adopted a strategy that, despite the stark differences in political ideology, bears striking similarities to the tactics used by Donald Trump. Both figures are vying for the highest office in the land, and both are employing approaches that play heavily to their respective bases, stiff-arm traditional media, and focus on key cultural and political touchstones that resonate within their camps.

 

Harris, who is nearly two decades younger than Trump and demonstrates a more disciplined use of the Teleprompter, appears to be executing a campaign that closely parallels Trump’s style. The question that lingers is whether this approach, essentially a left-leaning doppelganger to Trump’s strategy, will be sufficient to secure a victory in the upcoming election.

In many ways, Harris’s campaign feels like a mirror image of Trump’s, with her playing to the hardcore leftist base, disregarding the establishment media, and making a surprising last-minute vice-presidential pick that has raised eyebrows.

 

It almost seems as though the same strategists could be advising both campaigns. What is particularly intriguing is how both Trump and Harris accuse each other of being liars intent on undermining democracy. It might be the one thing on which they find common ground.

 

Harris’s choice of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate has been a point of contention. Walz, a late-entry dark-horse candidate, was not thoroughly vetted, and the "stolen valor" accusations against him have become a significant issue. Furthermore, Harris’s team seems to have missed the disconnect between the progressive left’s perception of the George Floyd protests as legitimate and the broader public’s view of them as destructive riots. The image of burned-out and boarded-up buildings in Minneapolis does not sit well with many Americans.

 

The political calculus behind Harris’s pick of Walz seems reminiscent of Trump’s selection of Ohio Senator JD Vance. Both choices appear to be aimed at appealing to the Midwest, yet they reveal a misunderstanding of the broader electorate. It’s as if both campaigns are operating under the assumption that all voters in flyover country are the same, a notion likely perpetuated by East Coast elites.

 

Moreover, both picks exude a sense of arrogance. Trump, seemingly confident of a victory in November, selected Vance as a loyalist who posed no threat to his dominance. Similarly, Harris, buoyed by a relief rally following Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the race, chose Walz as a non-threatening loyalist who would not irritate the more vocal segments of the Democratic base. Both Vance and Walz have poor electoral records, with Vance trailing the entire GOP ticket in Ohio in 2022 and Walz seeing a drop in vote percentage during his re-election bid—a rare occurrence in politics.

 

As the election approaches, it has become increasingly clear that voter dissatisfaction with the candidates will be a determining factor. Trump’s approval ratings have hovered in the low 40s for years, with his brief stint in positive territory occurring only during his immediate post-inauguration period—the shortest polling honeymoon in modern presidential history. He won the 2016 election largely because enough voters in key states disliked Hillary Clinton even more.

 

Harris, on the other hand, has also struggled with net negative approval ratings. Her recent uptick may simply be a reaction to Biden’s exit from the race, as she remains underwater in the RealClearPolitics average, trailing by an average of 4.7 percentage points. Trump fares even worse, down 8.1 points, with both candidates failing to crack 45 percent approval. This means that both Trump and Harris need to attract new voters to win, yet neither seems particularly interested in doing so.

 

A recent YouGov poll of registered voters illustrates the precarious position both candidates are in. Independents are split evenly, with 36 percent supporting Trump and Harris each, 13 percent undecided, 9 percent leaning toward third-party candidates, and 4 percent indicating they won’t vote at all. Even with Harris enjoying a post-Biden bounce, the 13 percent of undecided voters could swing the election either way.

 

Inflation remains the top concern for independents, with 26 percent identifying it as their primary issue, more than double the next concern, healthcare. However, Harris’s campaign seems more focused on issues like abortion and Trump’s threat to democracy, topics that resonate primarily with Democrats and liberals. For liberals, abortion is tied for the second most important issue at 14 percent, with 78 percent calling it “very important,” tied for third among their concerns.

 

Meanwhile, Trump continues to focus on immigration and crime, topics that play well with his base. For Republicans, immigration is second only to inflation, but Trump’s failure to connect immigration to inflation has been a significant misstep. Crime ranks low on the priority list for independents, with only 2 percent naming it their top issue, and just 57 percent considering it “very important.”

 

The difference between the Harris and Trump campaigns lies in their approach to execution. Harris has a competent campaign team, allowing them to do their jobs while she sticks to her prepared remarks. Trump, on the other hand, often undermines his own campaign with impulsive decisions. For instance, while Harris was addressing criticisms for not selecting Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro as her running mate, Trump was holding a surprise press conference where he waffled on his pro-life stance, continued his feud with Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, and ignored key issues in favor of personal grievances.

 

As Trump continues to focus on his own priorities rather than the issues that matter most to voters, Harris may be able to get away with running a campaign that lacks substance but benefits from discipline and Trump’s self-sabotage. In a race where neither candidate seems poised to attract a broader base, a steady hand might be enough to tip the scales in Harris’s favor.

 

Credit: Hill  2024-08-14

 

 

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[Tug]

The hill ehh?as far as outmaneuvering trump that’s child’s play every world leader has mopped the floor with him.they are still trying to disparage a guy that served 22years that’s ridiculous.especially coming from trump the fraud incarnate remember his university?his charity?just how much was he fined for defrauding the state of New York?ridiculous!

[HappyExpat57]

I sprinkled this article over my tomato plants. They started growing MUCH better.

[spidermike007]

Walz is superior to Vance on almost every metric. Plus, he is likable, and Vance is not. JD appears phony. And he lies, like Trump. In the recent interview with Nash for instance:

 

Several vicious lies.

 

Kamala Harris did not throw Joe Biden overboard.

 

Harris has not been making the decisions in Biden's absence.

 

Pure projection, Harris and Walz not comfortable in their own skin because Walz shook his wife's hand rather than hug and kiss her at the VP announcement.

 

After how many years of Trump calling everybody a different nasty name, Vance is accusing Harris and Waltz of name-calling because he doesn't like weird? 

 

Walz lying about his military service is simply not something he is qualified to talk about, due to the fact that Trump lied 30 times during the debate, and lies every time he opens his mouth, so how is that one lie such a big deal? he's questioning Harris's character for picking a man who lied, yet he's running with the man who lies all the time. It is this level of disingenuousness that is such a turn off with this man. 

 

He focuses a lot on the aspect of truth in regard to Walz's military service, yet how does Trump's running mate even have the audacity to speak of truth? 

 

He lies about project 2025 not being affiliated with their campaign, and yet multiple sources have said that Trump staffers, up to 80 of them have participated in the drafting of project 2025. Another lie?

 

He deliberately refers to Trump as president Trump instead of the former president, repeatedly.

 

He is highly disingenuous by criticizing medical costs as if the Democrats are responsible for that.

 

He criticized Harris for being anti-child and anti family, is there any truth in that criticism? 

 

He was criticizing masking in school when Trump was responsible for the initial spread of covid due to his inability to take responsibility for the disease, again very disingenuous. 

 

I do agree that he's infinitely more articulate and does not have any of the cognitive decline that Trump has, he can maintain a train of thought which is a good thing, but I'm not impressed with him. 

[thaipo7]

3 hours ago, Tug said:

The hill ehh?as far as outmaneuvering trump that’s child’s play every world leader has mopped the floor with him.they are still trying to disparage a guy that served 22years that’s ridiculous.especially coming from trump the fraud incarnate remember his university?his charity?just how much was he fined for defrauding the state of New York?ridiculous!

If Democrats tell the truth, they lose.

[novacova]

3 hours ago, Social Media said:

In many ways, Harris’s campaign feels like a mirror image of Trump’s, with her playing to the hardcore leftist base, disregarding the establishment media,

Yet no moderates have stepped up for her support and she has yet to do any extensive interviews and questions. 
This piece is pocked full of holes, who ever wrote it has quite the imagination.

[Tug]

9 minutes ago, thaipo7 said:

How many Playbooks do the Democrats have?  Have you taken an English or spelling classes?

I know my grammar sucks get over it,at least I’m not delusional about who and what trump is.

[placeholder]

2 hours ago, novacova said:

Yet no moderates have stepped up for her support and she has yet to do any extensive interviews and questions. 
This piece is pocked full of holes, who ever wrote it has quite the imagination.

The thesis of the article is that Harris is playing to her leftist base just as Trump is playing to his MAGA base. But the fact is what issues is Harris stressing that is directed at her leftist base?

Actually, what Harris is doing is letting Trump self-destruct. He seems to be utterly unable to control himself. Walz nailed it when he called Trump weird. Trump's shtick is wearing thin. And, as his mind deteriorates, it's only going to get worse for him. 

[Watawattana]

Polarized as ever.  Is there any balance out there in keyboard warrior-land?  Don't expect it from me by the way...