Garbage
The 2024 presidential race features one candidate so committed to mephitic oratory it is fitting that, in the dying days of the campaign, a “garbage” controversy has revealed who is winning. Trump has seen it impede his progress. Kamala Harris is using the contretemps to cement her advantage over her flailing opponent. And to prove she is nobody’s puppet.
Trump being Trump
On Sunday, during Trump’s Madison Square Garden hate-fest, one of the warm-up speakers, Tom Hinchliffe, referred to Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage.” No doubt the MAGA crowd thought that was hysterical — I’m told Tony is a comic. But the people who pay attention to demographics realized that alienating the 620,000 Puerto Ricans living in Pennsylvania was election suicide in a must-win state.
Trump’s campaign tried to soften the blow by claiming that Tony’s naked bigotry did not reflect their guy’s views. Everyone who matters knows that was a bald-faced lie. But they had to say something. Meanwhile, Trump ignored the politically expedient path — and undermined his campaign’s strategy — by trotting out his usual ‘defense’ and announced he hardly knew the guy. “I don’t know him, someone put him up there. I don’t know who he is.” And salted his error by saying he hadn’t heard the remark.
Trump’s more eloquent but equally tone-deaf number two, JD Vance, didn’t help by telling everyone to stop being so sensitive.
“We are not going to — we’re not going to restore the greatness of American civilization if we get offended at every little thing. Let’s have a sense of humor and let’s have a little fun and let’s go win in eight days.”
Insulting critical voters and then telling them, “Just kidding” is not likely a winning strategy. It also highlights the paper-thin skin of his boss. And predictably it took no time for the perpetually offended JD to gainsay his own rhetoric by reacting to a Joe Biden remark he didn't like by tweeting,
“This is disgusting. Kamala Harris and her boss Joe Biden are attacking half of the country.
There's no excuse for this. I hope Americans reject it.”
This raises a question. What did Joe say to bunch the selectively outraged JD’s panties?
Biden being Biden
Biden is not a gifted orator. There are weak spots in the filter between his brain and his mouth. But he is sensitive to slights lobbed at his fellow Americans — especially the ones who are the targets of MAGA’s bigotry.
So on Tuesday, when Joe went on offense, he forgot the 2016 “basket of deplorables” brouhaha. During a Zoom call with a Latino voter outreach group, Biden slammed Trump over Hinchcliffe’s racist remark at his rally.
“The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters—his demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American. It’s totally contrary to everything we’ve done, everything we’ve been.”
MAGA leaped on the Biden calling Trump’s supporters “garbage.” They thought they had another Clinton moment. But 2024 is not 2016. Joe is not Hillary. And America has witnessed eight years of hateful vitriol from the Republican candidate — which his supporters have swallowed and regurgitated.
In 2016, MAGA had not attacked the Capitol, smeared shit on the walls, and killed police officers. There were still GOP voters who could plausibly deny they knew Trump was a to-the-bone bigot. It was before “shit-hole” countries. And claims of inner-city (aka Black) terrorism. Trump might then have smugly swayed to chants of “Lock her up” but he had yet to threaten the incarceration of all his political opponents, declared his love of dictators past and present, and threatened to ignore the Constitution.
Biden, unlike Trump, owned his error. He walked back his remarks. And clarified that he meant the language of Trump’s base was garbage. In a video call with non-profit organization Voto Latino, he said,
“Earlier today I referred to the hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico spewed by Trump's supporter at his Madison Square Garden rally as garbage — which is the only word I can think of to describe it.
"His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable. That's all I meant to say. The comments at that rally don't reflect who we are as a nation."
Harris wins the ‘garbage war’
Faced with Trump and the GOP’s determination to make election hay out of Biden’s malapropism, Harris had three choices. Ignore the remark. Echo Biden’s refinement of his original statement. Or break with her boss, and carve her own path.
The first choice was weak. The second subservient. The third an opportunity to be her own woman. Harris choose to be true to herself.
She offered her position on the tarmac at Andrews AFB.
“Listen, I think, first of all, he clarified his comments, but let me be clear: I strongly disagree with any criticism of people based on who they vote for.
You heard my speech last night and continuously throughout my career. I believe that the work that I do is about representing all the people whether they support me or not,”
She offers Biden cover. But in her next breath stakes out her position. Reading the subtext, she says that regardless of whether you buy Joe’s retraction or not, she has not and will not ever criticize people for their party affiliation.
The undecided voter — amazingly the polls indicate there are still a few — can contrast her commitment to being President for all, with Trump’s desire to be President for himself.
Before Trump’s neo-Nazi rally, I think Harris had the edge. After that, Harris’s lot improved. Biden’s remarks may have threatened to dent her new advantage. But instead, Kamala used them to establish her independence.
Harris has stuck to the script. She has concentrated on the must-win states while keeping dreams of Texas alive. She has taken the fight to Trump by attacking his supposed strong suits — immigration, the economy, and inflation. And she has stuck to center-left policies without alienating the liberal wing of the party.
She has garnered the support of dyed-in-the-wool uber-conservatives, former Trump administration staffers, local Republican officials, reputable economists, right-wing judges, and triple-A-list celebrities. The Democratic establishment is 100% behind her. Barack and Michelle have been unabashed promoters.
Among the seven Republicans still alive who have run for President or VP (successfully or not — besides Trump and Vance) only one supports Trump. (Today’s trivia question: name them. Six should come easy. The seventh maybe not so much)
Her campaign has raised record cash. Bought advertising promoting her policies and instantly reacted to Trump's gaffes. They have invested heavily in the Election Day ground game. And hired teams of top-notch attorneys to deal with the tsunami of lawsuits a Kamala win will engender.
And she has established that she is Harris I, not Biden III. It will be a win for America. More of the Biden/Harris policies that have made the US the world leader in post-COVID recovery — while tamping down any foot-in-mouth disease.
(Correction: A previous version of this diary misstated the number of living GOP presidential and VP candidates (excepting Trump and Vance). The correct number is seven.
