Underestimating Kamala Harris is a Fool's Play

Kamala Harris has never lost an election. She finished second in the 2003 Primary for San Francisco District Attorney and came back to win the runoff against the incumbent. She was unopposed when she ran again in 2007.

Kamala wasn’t supposed to win when she ran statewide for Attorney General, a Black/Asian female, blasted as a San Francisco liberal who opposed the death penalty. She had less name recognition than her Los Angeles area opponent. On the night of the election, her opponent was leading and declared himself the winner. But when the final votes were counted, Kamala came out on top.

Kamala withdrew from her 2020 Presidential campaign after the money dried up and the combined forces of the Democratic Party leadership rallied for Joe Biden and against her. Had she made no waves, she would have been a leading choice for Biden’s VP choice, but she went for his jugular during the first televised debate and drew blood. She ended up being his choice anyway and was part of the winning ticket against incumbent Donald Trump.

There were some hurt feelings among Democrats, and even as Vice-President, there were constant leaks about discontent among her staff and her inability to carve out a niche. These calls were coming from inside the house, in addition to the Republican attempts to diminish her for fear of one day having another Black President.

Four years of Kamala-bashing, many times coming from Democrats, created an image of a mediocre candidate, maybe not up to the job as President. She was still a Black/Asian woman. Once Biden withdrew from the 2024 race, there was no possible justification for skipping over the current Vice-President, who has a base of her own that was watching every move of the Party. While Kamala was the only logical choice, some saw her as someone the Party was stuck with, as any other selection would create a Civil War in the Democratic Party. They knew Biden was headed toward ignominious defeat and taking some Senate and Congressional seats with him. Harris was seen as a Hail Mary, an attempt to salvage down-ballot races and make the presidential race respectable. They had forgotten who she was.

Most Americans got to know Kamala Harris as the junior Senator from California and the junior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. In that job, she grilled Attorney Generals and Supreme Court nominees. Because the Committee used a seniority system. Harris was the last to question those before her, but it was her questions that people waited for. Kamala dissected Attorney Generals Bill Barr and Jeff Sessions. Brett Kavanaugh was left babbling, and Amy Coney Barrett was confused. Nobody wanted to face Kamala Harris in a Judiciary Committee hearing. She was always prepared, and nobody ever got the best of her.

Kamala Harris is thoughtful, quick, and well-prepared. Her momentum is likely to build after the Democratic Convention, giving her a bump after the bumps she’s already received in polls. Trump’s last best hope may be a debate with Kamala Harris, which is scheduled on ABC on September 10th. Trump wants more debates because he’s falling behind; Harris may not agree to more because she may not need to.

Kamala Harris has been underestimated all her life. Doubters felt she wouldn’t be the San Francisco District Attorney, the California Attorney General, the United States Vice President, or the Democratic Party nominee for President. Trump was recently overheard calling Harris profane words that rhyme with ducking and snitch. Publicly, he tries to convince us that Kamala doesn’t think she’s Black. Is that the best he’s got?

I didn’t know what to expect when it was announced Kamala Harris would be replacing Joe Biden as the head of the ticket. Harris rounded up all the endorsements, and potential challengers fell by the wayside. She’s now preparing for the Democratic Convention and the September debate with Trump.

Donald won’t be able to help but underestimate Harris in preparing for the debate. He thinks he’ll be able to glide by without answering questions and claiming he’s been the best of all time and Harris is the worst. Far more intelligent people than Trump have faced against Harris and been discombobulated. When Harris took over the campaign, I didn’t know what to expect, specifically how America would react. For a moment, I underestimated her. I won’t make that mistake again.

This post originally appeared on Medium and is edited and republished with author's permission. Read more of William Spivey's work on Medium. And if you dig his words, buy the man a coffee.

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