In a startlingly swift sequence of events, Vice President Kamala Harris has won the support of party leaders, donors and — most important — delegates who had been expected to support President Joe Biden before he abandoned his quest for a second term.
It’s a remarkable show of solidarity, but Republicans are mischaracterizing it as something else: a desecration of democracy.
Former President Donald Trump, who is miffed that he spent time and money campaigning against Biden and now has to face off against the younger, more polished Harris, asserted: “They stole the race from Biden after he won it in the primaries — A First! These people are the real THREAT TO DEMOCRACY!”
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson chimed in: “Having invalidated the votes of more than 14 million Americans who selected Joe Biden to be the Democrat nominee for president, the self-proclaimed ‘party of democracy,’ has proven exactly the opposite.”
These comments about threats to democracy are rich coming from Trump and Johnson.
The former president’s outrageous attempt to overturn the 2020 election culminated in a riot at the U.S. Capitol. Johnson was instrumental in filing a brief by Republican House members supporting a lawsuit by Texas seeking to have the Supreme Court block certification of election results in four states where the voters chose Biden. The court rejected that meritless lawsuit, concluding that Texas lacked standing to contest how other states conduct their elections.
One can argue that the Democratic Party should have had a more competitive process to choose a nominee after Biden withdrew. But the reality is that serious opponents for Harris failed to materialize. Several of those mentioned as possible alternatives were quick to endorse her. It’s understandable that Harris quickly cemented support, given the lateness of the hour and the imperative of preventing Trump’s return to the White House.
If Harris clinches the Democratic nomination, as now seems inevitable, she will need to convince voters that she is preferable to Trump. The former president can be expected to hurl various accusations against Harris, but one that can be easily dismissed is that Harris “stole” the Democratic nomination.
A consensus is not a coup or a conspiracy.
