I am writing this mere hours after learning that President Joe Biden has stepped back from the presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris.
I got in very late last night from Philadelphia, the day after a bazillion flights were canceled due to the big Microsoft/CrowdStrike crash. I didn’t get to sleep until 2:30 a.m. and didn’t sleep well. Now I feel like I’m coming down with something.
Needless to say, it’s been a day. I don’t think I am in the right headspace for cogency, but deadlines are deadlines and here we are.
Anyway, about the Biden thing. Let me first of all say that it has been LESS THAN AMUSING to watch the Democrats flailing around while running against an absolutely reprehensible man who has no business holding any elected office ever again in his life because CRIMES.
Secondly, let’s all take a deep breath. I fully realize that this is all out of my control and, likely, out of yours, too.
Thirdly, I actually like Vice President Harris. I chose her over Biden in the primary, in fact. Not that it matters. It’s very clear she is the path forward. People floating names like California Gov. Gavin Newsom (who has endorsed Harris) or even, for whatever the fuck reason, Mitt Romney, need to shut up. It’s Kamala time and we’re just living in it.
Defeating Trump is, well, really important! We cannot let him hold our country hostage again and entrench his policies — or, I should say, the policies drafted for him by extremist right-wing organizations that he will absolutely carry out — into law for decades.
It is not too late to do this. I believe that Vice President Harris can absolutely beat disgraced felon Donald Trump. We’re in a post-Roe world and women are super pissed. LGBTQ+ people and our allies need to be very clear-eyed that Trump’s Supreme Court (which has a SIX-PERSON CONSERVATIVE MAJORITY; there are only three liberal justices) will absolutely undo marriage equality as quickly as they did abortion rights.
Other countries have far shorter campaign cycles than the length of time the U.S. has between now and November. We can do this.
But it isn’t going to be easy. Trump’s base is hella pumped, especially after the assassination attempt. Which was majorly fucked up and not OK. It is also really weird so many Trump supporters are wearing gauze on their ears in solidarity. People are weird. And while Trump is not a popular guy, he already won once despite what many people thought possible.
But never underestimate your fellow American to be a racist and misogynist piece of trash! In fact, if someone in your life has been managing to hide their white supremacist and sexist stripes, don’t worry! They will reveal them soon enough. Since Vice President Harris is a woman and also Black and also of South Asian descent.
Do I love everything about her? No, I do not. Her career as a prosecutor in California is at times problematic! That said, there will be no such thing as progressive criminal justice reform if Trump is elected again.
And forget about any progress in LGBTQ+ equality. President Biden has been the most pro-LGBTQ+ president ever and Vice President Harris is absolutely a part of that legacy.
The Human Rights Campaign endorsed Vice President Harris on the same day as Biden’s announcement.
“We owe the Biden-Harris team a debt of gratitude for leading the country out of a state of chaos and constant crisis under former President Trump,” HRC President Kelley Robinson said in a statement. And [HRC] endorses the tough, formidable and experienced Vice President Kamala Harris for president.”
“The Biden-Harris Administration has been the most pro-equality in history,” HRC’s statement continued. “Since the 2021 inauguration, the administration has taken extraordinary steps to advance equality. In 2022, President Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act into law, a landmark piece of legislation that codified federal protections for same-sex and interracial marriages. They have issued new administrative rules protecting LGBTQ+ youth from discrimination and harassment in schools, ensuring LGBTQ+ youth are protected in the foster care system and protecting LGBTQ+ patients from discrimination in health care. They have also filled the administration with members of the LGBTQ+ community, appointing a record 200+ LGBTQ+ people across each level of government and nominating a number of LGBTQ+ judges.”
That’s a pretty great record! Plus, the vice president wore that shiny rainbow jacket during Pride.
I rest my case!