Summary and Key Points: Following President Joe Biden's lackluster performance in the first 2024 presidential debate, Democrats are grappling with the possibility of finding a replacement.
-Vice President Kamala Harris emerges as a potential successor, but her unpopularity and perceived lack of competence raise doubts about her viability.
-Harris's 2020 presidential campaign failed to gain traction, and as Vice President, she has faced internal dissatisfaction and low public approval.
-Many Americans, including some Democrats, are skeptical of her ability to handle the presidency, further complicating Biden's chances in the upcoming election.
Is Vice President Kamala Harris a viable alternative to Joe Biden for the presidency?
Democrats at-large had an epiphany last night, albeit a delayed epiphany, one that should have bloomed years ago: Joe Biden is not fit for another term as president.
During the first 2024 presidential debate between Biden and Donald Trump, the sitting president was consistently vacant and, at times, completely nonsensical.
The man Democrats propped up at the debate as their presumptive nominee was very clearly incapable of running a country; rather, he looked like someone who may need help getting through his daily routines.
Biden’s performance left Democrats scrambling to find a replacement – not that it will matter; Biden isn’t stepping down and no one is forcing him down. Biden will likely take the Democratic nomination all the way to the election, where his prospects of victory are diminishing with each public appearance.
But were Biden replaced at the eleventh hour, one would think that Harris would be at the top of the list. And if Biden were to somehow win the election but were to perhaps become incapacitated at one point during his second four-year term, which would span from his 82nd to 86th years of life, Harris would assume the presidency. Either way, Harris deserves some attention as a possible successor to Biden.
So, can Harris handle the presidency?
To be frank, I don’t know if Harris can handle the presidency. My guess is: no.
What I do know is that most Americans, including me, don’t want her to be in a position to find out.
Harris is unpopular. That was clear after her 2020 presidential election, which commenced with great fanfare but fizzled out before the New Year without breaking the five percent polling threshold.
Harris’s attempts to market herself as a viable president, even at a time when she had the cultural wind at her back, inspired nothing but apathy from Democratic voters.
George Floyd’s murder, and the socio-political spasm that followed, salvaged Harris’s White House aspirations; in the summer of 2020, Biden vowed to select a black woman as a running mate. Harris won the spot. Biden won the election. And the results have not been pretty.
As Vice President, Harris has been historically unpopular internally and externally. Inside her administration, staff turnover has been high, with complaints pointing to her management style and lack of preparation. Outside the administration, among the American public, Harris has earned disappointment, even among Democratic loyalists, for her perceived rudderlessness and consistent inability to articulate herself. Harris’s disapproval was so high that some Democrats were openly advocating for Biden to replace her on the ticket.
That didn’t happen. And now Americans are slowly waking up to the reality that Biden won’t be capable of serving another four years as president – and that Harris is his successor.
For most, Harris as president is a non-starter, which will only compound Biden’s problems at the ballot box.
Harrison Kass is a defense and national security writer with over 1,000 total pieces on issues involving global affairs. An attorney, pilot, guitarist, and minor pro hockey player, Harrison joined the US Air Force as a Pilot Trainee but was medically discharged. Harrison holds a BA from Lake Forest College, a JD from the University of Oregon, and an MA from New York University. Harrison listens to Dokken.
