All eyes on Kamala

Daina was positively giddy hearing the news that Kamala will stand in Joe's place.  We had been arguing the past few weeks as to whether Biden should step down.  I felt it would cause too much chaos but a wave of support for her candidacy came washing in over social media within hours of the news, including from her presumed rivals at the convention, Gavin Newsom and Gretchen Whitmer.  If Kamala wins, Daina said, we will go to America!

It's been 16 years since we were last in the United States.  At the time, Obama was in the heat of his first presidential campaign.  We were flush with cash and took the kids on a cross country trip from Washington, DC to Los Angeles, and up the coast to San Francisco, picking up Obama paraphernalia along the way.  I wore my Obama t-shirt until most of the letters had come off in the countless washes.  

Little did we know that October would bring a huge stock market collapse with McCain looking like a deer caught in headlights at an emergency summit hosted by George Bush at the White House on how to deal with crisis.  Obama hadn't been invited.  Americans were anxious for a fresh face and fresh leadership. So too was the world.  Everyone was tired of "Shrub" and McCain seemed like more of the same misguided leadership.

Now we have a chance to see history repeat itself.  Kamala was holding her own in hypothetical polls before the surprise announcement on Sunday, and I imagine she will receive a bump in those numbers now that Biden has chosen her as his successor.   She still has to go through a nomination process at the convention but with no one openly challenging her, it seems like a done deal.  The only question is who she will pick for Vice-President?

Convention would say a white male, preferably from a Midwest state like Pennsylvania, Michigan or Wisconsin, but I got to thinking why not go all in and add Gretchen Whitmer to the ticket.  She is the very popular governor of Michigan.  Let this finally be the year of the woman in America!  It is long overdue.

Hillary had gone the conventional route with Tim Kaine in 2016, but he was too milquetoast and didn't generate any interest.  Plus, she forsook the Midwest, or Democratic "Blue Wall," at her own peril.  Biden won it back in 2020 but most polls have Trump ahead in these crucial states, so it would behoove Kamala to pick someone from this region.

Anyway, it is a big sigh of relief to finally have the health issue with Joe Biden settled.  The mainstream media seems a little annoyed he chose social media to make his announcement.  Like a pack of vultures, they chewed up his short missive and spat it back it out in bits and pieces, adding footage of Joe struggling for every step he took and even toppling over on his bicycle last year. 

Most of the endorsements for Kamala came via social media as well. Seems the Democrats realize that the mainstream media isn't their friend and ally but rather part of a conservative establishment, which will probably pitch alternatives to Kamala in the weeks before the convention.  There are a few key persons who haven't endorsed her yet, notably Barack Obama, who is apparently calling for an "open contest."  I'm guessing these are mostly seeds of dissention planted by the media in the hopes of an open Democratic convention next month.

I never really understood why the media went after Joe Biden the way it did, especially given Trump was hardly the picture of health himself.  This is a guy who was caught napping at his tax fraud trial in New York, continually veered off on wild tangents at rallies, and stumbled around a bit himself, including having a podium nearly topple over when he leaned in too hard at a fundraising dinner in Minnesota.  In the end, it proved too much for Joe, as he simply couldn't get past the issues of age and mental health that the media kept harping upon, especially after his dismal debate performance.  The podiums are now turned with Trump finds himself facing a candidate much younger than himself and with a few dance moves of her own.

Still, many are predicting Trump will dispatch Kamala the way he did Hillary.  America is simply not ready for a woman president.  We forget that Hillary beat Trump in the popular vote by nearly 3 million votes.  She just didn't have her votes dispersed in the right states, losing Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin by a combined total of 75,000 votes.  That's the electoral college for you.

I don't think Kamala will make the same mistake in taking these states for granted.  She has the added benefit of these states being currently led by Democratic governors who will be actively campaigning for her.  Plus, social issues like women's reproductive rights, gender identity, and gay marriage are once again at the forefront, thanks to the infamous Project 2025.  There is also the blatant partisanship shown by the conservative Supreme Court and federal judges when it comes to Trump's long list of indictments.  All this works in Kamala's favor.

I too find myself optimistic and will hold Daina to her pledge should Kamala win.  It would be nice to see America again, especially a free and democratic one.  The kids are all grown now, so it would probably be just the two of us.