Over the past week I, along with 22 million other Americans, tuned into the Democratic National
Convention live from Chicago. Though much of the convention dragged on with uninspiring
speakers, tedious ads and too long a run time (a usual component of such events), I was able to
catch a significant portion of the Convention. This DNC in 2024 is a unique spectacle due to the
circumstances surrounding it, with President Joe Biden dropping out of the race over a month
ago and endorsing his Vice President, Kamala Harris, as his successor. The DNC provided an
introduction to the American people of nominee-Harris, as she was largely shelfed early on in the
Biden administrations term due to her unpopularity, according to a LA Times Poll. For the non-
politically savvy American, or those who don’t tune into conservative TV, Kamala Harris is a
relatively unheard-of name. Therefore, the DNC has taken the opportunity to refresh their
branding to be as palatable as possible for the average middle of the road American, attempting
to win back an election that 2 months ago was truly believed by many to be a lost cause.
The Democratic party has recently had struggles in messaging as the “woke” campaign
approach, specifically targeting identity-based issues towards religious, racial and sexual
minorities, has not been a successful strategy with suburban independent voters. As a result,
they’ve opted for a more patriotic, conservative Convention full of crowds chanting “USA,
USA” and waving U.S. flags in a manner ubiquitously synonymous with Trump rallies and
national campaigning for Republicans. Many of the speakers even sounded like Republicans,
including Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro giving a speech centered on “ freedom .” President
Biden argued that Conservative critiques of the status-quo and Trump’s belief that the United
States is a “ failing nation ” as un-American . In another deviation from past progressive
messaging, they are even using Harris’s former work as a prosecutor to claim she will be a
tough-on-crime candidate, in quite a reversal from the “defund the police” push in 2020. One ad
even stated (1:26:30) that Harris “is the person who built the foundation in how we do criminal
justice in American” (a quite exaggerated claim). Harris also spoke in her own speech about her
desires to secure the border and cut taxes, both major Republican talking points. I couldn’t help
but acknowledge that the Democrats almost sound as though they are trying to become Republicans.
These phenomena weren’t only present at the DNC but are an essential thematic element to
Harris’s campaign. She has recently been called out for mimicking policies touted by the Trump
campaign, such as no tax on tips, expanded JD Vance’s proposed $5,000 child tax credit to
$6,000 and in a massive shock went as far to propose the construction of a border wall . Yes, you
heard me right, Kamala Harris, who was at one point the most liberal Democratic Senator in the
U.S. Senate in 2020, who has on record opposed a border wall under the Trump administration
and belittled it as a “ vanity project ” is now affirming the need of an actual border wall between
the United States and Mexico. She has also rolled back progressive policies proposed by her
primary Presidential campaign in 2020, such as a ban on fracking, open borders and universal
healthcare, much to the chagrin of leftists.
Don’t get me wrong, the Democrats are still plenty liberal, and their versions of freedom and
patriotism don’t exactly line up with Republicans. Democrats’ conceptualization of freedom
mostly entails abortion rights, LGBT rights and even coining the term “freedom from gun
violence’” in a stark contrast to Republicans value of the freedom of gun rights. The Democrats
even tried to change the consideration of what it means to be patriotic, with Obama claiming that
gay rights, acceptance of foreigners and union membership are defining of our national identity.
The trick with campaigns is the party and candidate need to walk a fine line that will both excite
and turn out their own base to vote, while also not scaring the opposing’s parties enough to vote
either. From this lens, you could say that the DNC was a success, as through their Hollywood-
level production they effectively communicated their theme of freedom and liberal patriotism.
Plus, addressing some Republican concerns by capitulating to them with promises of securing
the border and tax cuts may have scared a few less conservative independents who will no longer
feel the need to vote against Harris. They were able to do this while still energizing liberals to
turnout with a major focus on abortion, their singular winning issue, which will turn out their
base of women voters.
Overall, though, Democrats have been forced to migrate to the right on key issues alongside the
messaging from their campaigning. It is quite a wager against the memory of the American
people, yet the reversal of their attitudes could be necessary to win the election. However, it is
quite hypocritical as their messaging is acutely similar to the rhetoric surrounding the so-called
“enemies of Democracy ” on the right. I wasn’t convinced, and I imagine many other Americans
were not either.