by Pat Nolan
The Democratic establishment is laying the groundwork to dump Joe Biden. When the New York Times, Washington Post, Newsweek, Axios, and the Atlantic desert a liberal president, you know the knives are out. Which raises two questions: when will they stick the shiv into Biden? And how do they plan to deal with the “Kamala problem”?
To all but her most ardent fans, it is obvious that having Kamala on the 2024 ticket would be a disaster for the Democrats. Her 2020 campaign collapsed before a single vote was cast. Biden made her his running mate, not because she was a good candidate, but solely because he had backed himself into a corner when he promised he would choose a black woman as his running mate.
Since taking office Kamala has failed at every task Biden has assigned her — border czar, expanding access to broadband, outreach to small businesses on COVID, etc. Her public statements are incomprehensible word salads, void of any substance. For instance, I have yet to find anyone who can tell me what her recent attempt to define “culture” meant. It was just babble, ending with her trademark nervous laughter.
It appears the Democrat establishment wants Kamala out of the way, and there is no doubt they could find an ambitious US Attorney willing to “find something” from her many years in public office to open an investigation of potential criminal conduct. Faced with a threat of a public investigation, Kamala might be persuaded to take an exit from the Vice Presidency. If you don’t think that is possible, just look back to the way the establishment applied the “bring me the man, I’ll find the crime” method to ease Spiro Agnew out of the Vice Presidency in 1973.
So, as if on cue, late last month an editor of Newsweek suggested that Harris would make a dandy replacement for AG Merrick Garland. As a former California Attorney General, she is arguably qualified, at least on paper. Others have suggested Gavin Newsom could appoint Harris to Feinstein’s Senate once the Washington powerbrokers made Feinstein an offer she couldn’t refuse. These are just two of the options that would allow Kamala to gracefully remove herself from the line of succession rather than be subject to the humiliation of a public investigation of purported misdeeds.
The Black Vote
The most vexing dilemma facing the Democrats is how to justify sidelining Harris who would make history as the first black woman president. Political insiders know that there is zero possibility that it could happen. However, many black voters are holding on to the hope that it might happen. Given the dependence of the Democrats on overwhelming support from blacks, this would be very tricky. Sidelining Kamala could lead to black voters sitting out the next presidential election. That would doom the ticket.
However, there is one path the Democrats could take which would immediately dispel any notion of betrayal. If Michelle Obama announced she is running for president, any resentment among black voters about Harris’ treatment would evaporate. While some may think this is farfetched, a Michelle Obama candidacy makes sense for many reasons. Michelle is very popular with the Democrats’ base and is far more popular than Kamala. Michelle has recently raised her profile, speaking out on issues important to the Dems’ base. This is a striking shift from the low-profile Michelle has kept since she and Barack left the White House.
Here a few highlights of Michelle’s recent high-profile activities:
- Michelle founded “When We All Vote,” promising to register over 1 million new voters. And note that it is Michelle, not Barack, that is heading up this effort.
- In February Michelle launched her podcast based on “Light We Carry” and went on a 50-city tour promoting it.
- In April, Michelle joined Bruce Springsteen on stage to sing and play tambourine.
- Also in April, Michelle appeared on a Tonight show skit, and took the opportunity to take a jab at Donald Trump.
- In May Michelle co-founded PLEZi Nutrition, an enterprise that she said will “jumpstart what I hope will be a race to the top that will transform the entire food industry.”
- On June 1, Walmart announced a new line of clothing, “You Can Shop This Michelle Obama — Approved Designer’s Activewear at Walmart.”
- At the end of June, Michele forcefully denounced the Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action.
- And on July 12, it was announced with great fanfare that she scored an Emmy nomination.
While some may think this is farfetched, a Michelle Obama candidacy makes sense for many reasons.
Monica Crowley noted Michelle’s flurry of activity at CPAC 2022, “For all of these people who say, ‘Michelle Obama isn’t political’ [and] ‘They’re making too much money now,’ keep a very close eye on her because her trajectory is exactly what Barack Obama did before he ran for president and what Bill and Hillary Clinton both did. I think if she were to run, that would be a very difficult situation for us.”
As part of the deal Michelle could reward Gavin Newsom by picking him for her VP in return for facilitating Kamala’s return to the Senate. For reasons that escape me, Newsom excites Democrats. Having him as the veep candidate would tap into this enthusiasm.
Of course, Newsom would have to sublimate his ego to accept the second spot. But he is young and can wait his turn. He does carry some baggage, such as his mismanagement of California’s economy, his shifting stance on reparations, and his unseemly dinner at The French Laundry during the COVID lockdown. However, nominees for vice president receive much less scrutiny than the top of the ticket. So, he would not be as much of a drag on the ticket as he would be if he were the presidential nominee.
Of course, there are down sides to the Michelle strategy. Both Michelle and Barack seem to be enjoying their “lifestyle of the rich and famous.” And their ability to add to their wealth would be severely restricted — at least temporarily. Plus, it is apparent that Michelle does not enjoy retail politics. She is not big on meet and greets, nor fond of the “care and feeding” of local politicians and donors.
However, those factors are not sufficient to keep Michelle from getting into the race. For the Democrat establishment which is desperate to move Joe and Kamala aside without alienating black voters, a Michelle Obama candidacy is the best option. Such a ticket would excite their base heading into the 2024 elections. Will this happen? I don’t know, but it certainly looks like the establishment is lining up to attempt it.
– – –
Pat Nolan is the Director Emeritus of the Nolan Center for Justice at the American Conservative Union Foundation and has been a leader in the conservative movement for decades.
Photo “Michelle Obama” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0.
