Tay Zonday on Warpcast

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Why is it that when Donald Trump claims to be a leftist— draining the swamp, helping manufacturing, creating the best healthcare— none of his right-wing supporters believe he’ll betray them? But as soon as Kamala Harris says anything appeasing to the right, leftist supporters believe she’s sold her soul? Can’t Harris use appeasement and subterfuge to win an election and then do something different? Why is that only Donald Trump’s coalition privilege?

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Interesting argument. It relies a lot of “what if” though. With respect to selling her soul, it’s not a question of flipping the script from an otherwise left-leaning playbook. It’s an affirmation of an already very right of center worldview, that she herself is bragging about, with examples of how she’s back up these right wing views. So the issue is more that she is making concessions to the right while abandoning any working alongside the left. It’s very reminiscent of Macron. And I think it justifiably worries progressives, whether or not you agree.

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Going back to the first part though, Trump didn’t play to leftist narratives but rather to populist and anti-elitist ones. Draining the swamp was a combination of small government conservatism and anti-statist/libertarianism (or maybe even subterfuge in service of foreign governments). Helping manufacturing wasn’t by supporting unions or providing government contracts but through protectionist tariffs and sanctions. And making the best healthcare system was basically just gutting Medicare for all, to push a more private system. I don’t think we’re in agreement of what constitutes left policies.

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I could just as easily say that none of Kamala Harris’s accused appeasements of the right are actually right-wing. She says she’s a capitalist and “understands the limitations of government” in changing her position on Medicare For All. Is that right-wing or neoliberal in the manner of Jimmy Carter’s conflation of capital deregulation with leftist populism? We’re exceeding the utility of “Left” and “Right” as descriptors— My point doesn’t depend on us agreeing on the semantics of the lies. My point is that Trump appeases some positions opposite those of his base!(because he is, as Harris rightly says, in many ways an unserious and endlessly self-contradicting person)—and his base does not have a codependent abandonment fit threatening to throw elections and/or destroy him. Harris is not grated that latitude by some of her base. One begins to ask if that VIVID double-standard is attributable to the implicit bias of racism, sexism or other marginalizations her base opposes.

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I would argue that whether sexism and racism are at play (I’m sure they are) is not the only, or the main factor in this double standard. Democrats are an inherently more divided party, filled with more informed and critical voters. They do the small d democratic thing of being actually critical of politicians, even within their own party. Republicans are aligned in narrative, quite rigidly, even going so far as to back Trump when it’s not what the entirety of the party wants. There is an uncritical nature born of equal parts right wing power-play strategy and gullible base voters ignoring that the party doesn’t serve their needs, and falling to identity politics and demagoguery. As far as what the ideal outcome of this particular race is, we agree. Trump must lose. But, race and sex aside, Harris has many strikes against her that are worth discussing.

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rathermercurial

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Wait, nah hold on. Are you attributing voters' demands for an honest candidate, as opposed to the biggest liar we've ever had, are based in sexism and racism? That's not productive discourse. The issue I see, and share, with a lot of progressive or left people re: Kamala's rhetoric is that it's sugar-coated anti-worker and anti-immigrant aggression. Not as bad a trump, by far, but still representative of the same neoliberal agenda that's been pilfering our society into misery, unemployment, homeless, addiction and desperation (which they'll happily prey upon but never address). Yes, we're going to hold Harris to a higher standard than Trump. Not because we're sexist or racist, but BECAUSE HE'S TRUMP. We're going to pressure her to be the progressive candidate that progressive voters are demanding, because progressive votes will win her the election. She doesn't need center-right voters. She needs to secure the voters she *already had* before divebombing to the right.

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