This story initially was printed by Real Clear Wire
By Ethan Watson
Actual Clear Wire
After yanking Joe Biden off the ticket with a large vaudeville cane, Kamala Harris has breathed new life into the Democratic social gathering. Kamala opened her marketing campaign with the “politics of pleasure,” replete with twerking rappers, sassy X clapbacks, and quirky Doritos videos. However, after weeks of stress from the media, Kamala has lastly posted her stance on the problems dealing with America, and on the debate on Tuesday evening, she dove deeper into her insurance policies than ever earlier than. Lastly, Gen Z voters have the chance to do what everybody least expects from them: weigh every presidential candidate from a coverage perspective.
Till now, I’ve been mystified as to why my era, normally so fast to acknowledge inauthenticity, was falling for Kamala’s cotton sweet marketing campaign. However Gen Z voters have been instantly smitten with Kamala, whose mild, albeit vapid rhetoric supplied a reprieve from the political mudslinging of the final eight years. She threw live shows and posted goofy movies. As a substitute of participating in contentious discussions, Kamala supporters may quip “Brat Summer season” whereas retweeting Mark Hamill. It was mild and enjoyable, and after years of ugly politics, even her blatant pandering was a pleasant change.
By spoon-feeding younger voters inoffensive content material, Harris deflected their consideration from her flip-flopping on issues and pushing radical insurance policies like an unrealized capital gains tax. Her proxies dodged questions on air, claiming that she was too busy to sit down for an interview. And most younger voters supported Kamala, with 58.7% of voters 18-34 viewing her favorably after the DNC in August.
However Kamala’s precise concepts have been compelled into the highlight. As Harris will get severe, so ought to Gen Z.
I’ve seen firsthand my era’s BS detectors in motion. We all know after we can skip a hokey motivational speaker at an organization occasion or skim the “required” readings. We traverse profession festivals, amassing swag and appearing as phony recruiters attempt to persuade us that their firm isn’t a pyramid scheme. In different phrases, we don’t drink the Kool-Help.
Now that Harris’ insurance policies are within the open, we should always deal with her with the identical scrutiny. If Gen Z is admittedly dissatisfied with the path the corporate goes, per a Spring 2024 Harvard Youth Poll, then maybe we should always think about the truth that parts of her model new “Points” web page have been copied from the Joe Biden marketing campaign website. Bear in mind him? He’s the one who was in cost – or not less than who appeared in cost – when that Harvard ballot was taken earlier this 12 months.
Moreover, 53% of Gen Z voters consider that there’s a dire disaster occurring on our southern border, a border that Kamala presided over as border czar. Do we actually consider she’s the most effective candidate to resolve that downside?
One other driving issue behind Gen Z’s discontent with the established order is the economic system. On that subject, Harris echoes Joe Biden’s insurance policies. Harris proposes a $25,000 first-time homebuyer handout, doubling down on Biden’s $10,000 proposal. Harris’ insurance policies additionally embrace increasing the Reasonably priced Care Act, which has been the legislation of the land for the previous 14 years (and handed whereas Joe Biden was Vice President). She touts her plan to boost the tax on long-term capital features to twenty-eight% – in different phrases, 28% of what Gen Z makes within the inventory market will go to not a house down fee however to the federal government. Do we actually assume that can assist younger individuals prosper?
I name on my era to use to Kamala Harris the identical utility maximization we do in all areas of life. Now that she’s dropped the TikTok-and-vibes charade, we have now the prospect to assume critically about whether or not Kamala represents the change to the established order, or whether or not she’s simply Joe Biden 2.0. It appears Kamala can buckle right down to enterprise when pressed. Can we?
This text was initially printed by RealClearPolitics and made accessible by way of RealClearWire.
Ethan Watson is a Younger Voices contributor working in direction of a Grasp of Accounting diploma on the College of Kansas. He holds twin undergraduate levels in Accounting and Political Science with a watch towards legislation faculty within the close to future. Comply with him on X: @erwatson13.