Public opinion polls suggest that U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is doing slightly better than Joe Biden was against Donald Trump, but Republican attacks against her are only now ramping up. File Photo by Ting Shen/UPI
Even as a candidate for vice president, Harris was the target of an intense barrage of conservative attacks that claimed, among other things, that she slept her way to political prominence , a common slur against women in power. The anti-Harris rhetoric is part of what a report by the Wilson Center, a nonpartisan think tank, described as a broad pattern of gendered and sexualized attacks on prominent women in public discourse.
More recently, those comments were joined by conservative attacks branding Harris as the "border czar," part of an effort to tie her to immigration, a hot-button topic for conservatives.
The intense attacks so far are only a fraction of what will come. Trump is skilled at both character assassination and political self-defense. Together, they translate into an exceptional ability to defeat his political rivals once they enter the presidential campaign arena.
But Harris also has sharp rhetorical skills that could make this a fierce election fight.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris visits Smize Dream Ice Cream shop in Washington on July 19. Pool Photo by Nathan Howard/UPI
Trump's alternative facts
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris attends a Fourth of July celebration at the White House in Washington on July 4. File Photo by Tierney L. Cross/UPI
Earlier in 2024, Trump easily dispatched another round of highly experienced Republicans, most notably Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley .
Like those other opponents, President Biden has long endured Trump's personal attacks. But in 2020, Trump's original nickname of "Sleepy Joe" failed to become as effective as his insults aimed at other politicians, and Biden's election marked Trump's only electoral defeat.
As the 2024 election approached, Trump and conservative voices once again demonstrated their immense influence in shaping political narratives. They have convinced many voters this year to absolve Trump for his mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic , ignore that he designed a Supreme Court majority to overturn Roe v. Wade and agree with him that the 2020 election was stolen.
In an even more powerful demonstration of Trump's skills at political marketing, polls show that many voters follow Trump's lead and condemn Biden for U.S. economic conditions that in fact are quite good.
Given Trump's public relations mastery -- and the great susceptibility of many voters to his false narratives -- one can marvel about how the Biden campaign had been able to endure the never-ending rhetorical assault and keep the contest as close as surveys show it had remained until recently.
During a rally in Grand Rapids, Mich., on July 20, Trump attacked both Biden and Harris , repeatedly calling Biden "stupid" and insulting his IQ. But Harris, Trump said, was "crazy."
"I call her laughing Kamala," Trump told the crowd. "You can tell a lot by a laugh. She's crazy. She's nuts."
A former prosecutor against a convicted felon
With Biden dropping out of the campaign, political developments suggest Trump may be in for a taste of his own medicine.
Harris' previous career as a U.S. senator who challenged Trump administration officials and the former president's judicial nominees demonstrates that she is among the most effective Democratic officeholders when it comes to holding Republicans accountable.
Biden's departure may provide another major opportunity for Harris to reset the character assassination narrative, as the focus on age can now boomerang against Republicans. Trump now holds the record as the oldest major-party nominee for president, and a key issue that he used against Biden is likely to be turned back toward the former president.
For voters, it promises to be a scorched-earth campaign season.
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