(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Dear Candidate Harris...PLEASE be yourself!!! [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-07-25 Who am I to give you or anyone else campaign advice? You aren’t going to read it anyway. But I think this is a message you need to hear from me, and many of us on the left. One of the knocks on Hillary Clinton was always that she seemed a bit stiff, shrill, and...inauthentic. People who met her would always say that in person, or small groups, she is really funny, and kind, and warm, and charismatic. There was a huge deficit in her affect and perceptions of her between intimate settings and large campaign settings. It wasn’t only her allies that thought this. Republican colleagues in the senate often mentioned it. She was popular. Respected. Relatable. And...wait for it...LIKEABLE!!! Now, we know that it’s unfair to blame her for this. It’s not uncommon with powerful women who live their entire lives under a much different pressure, not just in degree but in kind, than male counterparts. It absolutely sucks. An enormous double standard. Yes, it’s ridiculous that I’m telling you this. Consider it not as a reminder, but an assurance that many of us hetero men see it. The common knock on you is quite similar. People love you in person. They find you smart and caring and focused and confident and warm to the point of...maternal. Yeah, that word comes up. And not in a condescending way. But as a positive. (I looked for a link, but google overwhelms me with “maternal health”, an issue on which you have been admirably vocal and active). In fact, it’s a good foil to Vance and others slagging you off for not being sufficiently a mother because you never had “biological” children and she married your partner and entered his “biological” children’s lives when they were young teens. I once read something from an adoptive mom that said something like “never think I love you any less because you grew in my heart, not beneath it. We can tell you’re not faking your love and connection with your kids. And, as a parent myself, I can tell you that I could never love someone the way Doug Emhoff OBVIOUSLY loves you if they didn’t love my three absurdly attractive and occasionally maddening kids. One can also see this impulse, by the way, in your love of cooking. You, like me, take so much pleasure in nourishing. It’s one of the reasons I find you appealing. Finally, we know that you have been an important figure for your niece from the start, especially as your younger sister was a single parent for years. Yes, you are a goofball. You love having fun. And it’s wonderful when you don’t care how that looks to others. Those videos of you dancing out of step with a crowd of kids, trying to learn their dance, and grinning your wonderful carefree grin, just loving it, are magic. We see it’s not an act. Or you should have been an actor and would have won every award in the book. People have often complained in the past that you switch stances too much and don’t always sound as passionate about them, even uncomfortable with those that don’t really inspire you. This too, I think, seems to me colored by her gender and an unfair judgment that would be less of an issue with a man in the same position. I imagine you agree here. But I want you to hear it from me. But here’s the deal. You don’t need to appeal in different directions as much now. There’s no primary. You are straight to the general. In some senses, of course, you need to appeal to the center. But given the moral and intellectual and aesthetic (yeah, this counts) contrast with your horrific and monstrous opponent, you don’t need to force too much. Just debunk the smears and set out your own vision as your first ad does. I say this although, like many here, I’m not going to like some of what you says about the issues. You are a liberal, I’m some flavor of unabashed socialist. You will probably be too cozy with Wall Street for me. Both of necessity and ideologically. You are a law and order candidate, a great asset right now, and you’re right to lean into it. I’m for much more radical criminal justice reform and a significant dismantling of the carceral state. Far to your left on these issues and others. My guess is that there will be foreign policy stances that will make my skin crawl. But it doesn’t matter. You’ve got my vote. You doesn’t need to earn it. I’m all in. I want you to drop any pressure on yourself. You’re a good thinker. You could think circles around me, and I’m pretty confident I’m pretty smart. With a PhD to prove it. You just needs to pick stances you’re comfortable advocating for, and keep your appeal as sharp as it has been in recent days. If you try to be something she’s not, even more than the equivalent man, you’ll be painted as phony and pandering. Fumble an interview? Do 10 more immediately. Like Elizabeth Warren. Your competition is so egregious. Even something like 30% of registered Republicans don’t like him and are loathe to vote for him (not everyone can be shameless Nikky Haley or Lindsey Graham or so many others), and even where he leads you in swing state polls, he rarely breaks 50%. There was a high percentage of independents who didn’t want to vote for him OR Biden. He’s a known quantity. He’s at his ceiling. And most of his supporters are unpersuadable. All this adds up to completely license to BE YOURSELF. Be goofy. Be smart. Be sincere. Be warm. Say what you believe. If ever a candidate was positioned to do so, you are. And forget the misogynists, conscious and unconscious. I sincerely apologize if any of this was condescending. You know everything I’ve written here better than me. But I want you to know that I know it. And so do most all of us supporting you from the left. We’re not going to bail. Be you. We’ve got your back. Just go for it. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/7/25/2257950/-Dear-Candidate-Harris-PLEASE-be-yourself?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=latest_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/