We Had to Destroy Democracy to Save It

democracy

by Bill Astore | Aug 7, 2024

Basically, the slogan of the Kamala Harris/Tim Walz campaign is: Vote for us because Trump. Because Trump allegedly represents the direst of threats to what’s left of democracy in America.

Too bad the DNC and all its rich donors had to destroy democracy with the alleged goal of saving it from Trump.

First, the DNC fixed the primary process for Joe Biden, Then, after Biden’s disastrous debate performance, the DNC and various operators like Obama and Pelosi forced Biden out (the donors also withheld their money). Harris was anointed as the party savior though no one voted for her to be the Democratic nominee for the presidency. Then Harris gained the official nomination in a virtual roll call of delegates in which 99% allegedly voted for her. Even dictators in Latin America and North Korea have trouble getting 99% of the vote.

Harris has ascended in the most undemocratic process imaginable, yet she’s being marketed as the savior of democracy. My head just might explode.

As a historian, even as an ordinary human, I have a memory longer than fifteen minutes. I well remember the 2020 campaign, where Kamala flamed out quickly without earning a single delegate. Until about fifteen minutes ago, she was an unpopular vice president, shunted aside and given various no-win jobs (“border czar”) or low-priority ones (the space program).

Back in 2021, I wrote about Harris and her photo op with kids at the Naval Observatory in DC. I caught some flak for it from a couple of Harris supporters. My main point was how scripted and phony the event seemed; turns out the kids were actors.

We’re going to see a lot of scripted events and photo ops in the next three months. I watched some of the Harris/Walz kickoff event yesterday and it was total fluff. Lots of vague platitudes about the future, about freedom, opportunity, and the promise of America, about “the politics of joy” (I guess because Kamala laughs a lot?), but nothing about stopping the genocide in Gaza, nothing about climate change, nothing about our exploding national debt.

You get the picture: It’s a feel-good campaign of empty slogans with occasional twerking.

Anyhow, here’s what I wrote about Kamala and space in 2021. I think you’re going to see a lot of these canned performances over the next 90 days.

Kamala Harris Is Lost in Space (Posted 10/14/21) W.J. Astore

Did you know Vice President Kamala Harris is Chairwoman of the National Space Council? I didn’t — until a friend notified me of a feel-good video featuring Harris and a few earnest and photogenic kids on YouTube. The kids were decidedly diverse: boys and girls, black and brown and white, but they all had something in common. No, it wasn’t their enthusiasm for space — it’s that they were all paid actors.

Here’s the link if you haven’t seen the video:

As my wife and I watched the video, my better half turned to me and said, “stagey” and “fake.”

I had to laugh as Kamala Harris tried to wow the kids about seeing craters on the moon. My goodness — on a clear night you can see craters with the naked eye. A decent pair of binoculars (I have 10×50 Tasco binoculars) will reveal plenty of gorgeous detail. You don’t exactly have to visit the Naval Observatory to see moon craters.

Even through my relatively cheap $200 camera, I can see plenty of detail. Here’s a photo I took of the moon, a handheld shot done quickly and inexpertly:

I have some experience talking to real kids about astronomy. Elementary school kids can be fun. One class I talked to wanted to know all about UFOs. Another wiseguy kid asked about Uranus, pronouncing it “your anus,” of course. I smiled, quietly corrected his pronunciation, and answered his question. We both had a laugh.

Yet apparently Kamala Harris is not to be trusted talking to real kids who might go off-script. Perish the thought of a kid who might make a joke about Uranus. The horror! It doesn’t inspire confidence that she’s only a heartbeat away from the presidency, as the saying goes.

If and when the space aliens come for me, I know what I’m saying: Take me to your leader — mine is lost in space.