Excitement over the presidential campaign of Kamala Harris is reflected among Cambridge and Somerville centrist and center-left Democratic institutions, but another national phenomenon is true here too: Further left on the spectrum there is wariness and resignation, with a vote for the ticket meant only to help prevent another term in the White House for former president Donald Trump, now firmly in control of the Republican Party.
Among those who see Harris as a strategic choice rather than a favorite is Willow Carretero Chavez, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology senior and member of the Boston Democratic Socialists of America.
“Harris doesn’t really inspire hope in me; she’s more of a stopgap to prevent Trump from winning,” Chavez said.
Her view of President Joe Biden, whose support of Israel against Gaza drew gibes on the left of being “genocide Joe,” has influenced her perspective on Harris. Before Biden stepped down July 21, Chavez said she was unsure if she could bring herself to vote for him. When he stepped down, Chavez said she felt “relief.”
Harris has been in support of a cease-fire and has discussed a two-state resolution for Israelis and Palestinians – yet Chavez remains uncomfortable. “I don’t think Harris represents a meaningful change in terms of the actual policies, especially in respect to Palestine,” Chavez said.
“Turn-of-the-page moment”
Elsewhere among local Democrats, foreign policy was barely an afterthought.
The Somerville Democratic Party was first in the area to embrace Harris, voting 12-0 on July 22 to endorse her and list who else in the city backed her campaign, including Mayor Katjana Ballantyne, members of the state legislative delegation (Sen. Pat Jehlen and Rep. Christine Barber) and nine members of the City Council – but not Willie Burnley Jr. or J.T. Scott, both endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America.
“As a party, we are proud of the enormous success of the Biden-Harris administration,” the committee said in a press release. “No administration has led more boldly on infrastructure,” the group said, noting also the appointment of hundreds of federal judges and efforts around Covid and investing in communities by passing the American Rescue Plan Act.
Enthusiasm was high also among their Cambridge counterparts. “This is a turn-of-the-page moment where people are excited. Harris is talking about the future and she’s appealing to a better, more inclusive America, and people feel represented there,” said George Varghese, chair of the Cambridge Democratic City Committee. “Especially in Cambridge – it’s a diverse, vibrant community, and she speaks to that.”
Harris is younger than the former Democratic and current Republican candidate, multiethnic, with Jamaican and Indian heritage, and would be the first woman president at a time reproductive rights are a critical issue.
Fearing a Trump term
Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade abortion protections made possible by Trump-appointed members of the Supreme Court, his campaign and supporters have attacked LGBTQ rights, targeted care for transgender youth, banned books and more. The policies are outlined in a Republican plan called Project 2025 – a vision for the country if Trump wins in November. While Trump has denied being involved in the project, his campaign rallies echo the ideas, many of which were written by Trump’s former aides and White House picks.
“This is a fight for the heart and soul of America,” Varghese said. “The world that Trump and [Republican vice presidential candidate] J.D. Vance want to take us back to is scary. It’s a world where we had fewer rights, where people didn’t feel like they could express who they were and love, and women were supposed to be in the kitchen. People don’t want to go back to the divisiveness of Trump, the racism, the misogyny, the nativism, all that ugliness.”
Henry Wortis, a Cambridge member of Our Revolution, a democratic socialist group founded by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, explained his support for Harris by telling how his family came to America: Fleeing Vienna in the early 1930s as Germany’s political radicalization destabilized the region. This shaped his parents’ political views, and in turn his own, Wortis said.
“This moment in America’s political history is our Germany 1932 moment,” Wortis said.
“The most important [thing] is to defeat the Maga Republicans. Women’s rights, abortion access are both critical. Things I would love to see are an extension of voters’ rights, extension of the right to unionize, an increase in federal minimum wage – all these things would help,” Wortis said. “But are not as crucial as beating Trump.”
Vice-presidential ticket
Harris announced her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, on Tuesday, introducing him as “a governor, a coach, a teacher and a veteran” who has “delivered for working families like his.”
Before the announcement of Walz, vice presidential speculation included Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg, among others.
Compared with these names, Walz has drawn little national attention. In a poll by NPR, PBS and Marist released Monday, 71 percent of respondents said they did not know who Walz was or were unsure how they felt about him.
Walz has served as governor of Minnesota since 2019. His background as a Midwestern Democrat could help reach white, working-class voters and those with military backgrounds. As governor, he has managed to pass several progressive policies. Before that he served 12 years in Congress representing a right-leaning district: He supported the Affordable Care Act, a left-leaning policy, while backing wars in the Middle East, a right-wing stance. He is critical of Trump and Vance’s positions on abortion access and education.
What broadens the Harris-Walz ticket’s appeal across the political spectrum may be discouraging to some, including the youngest and more progressive voters. The Democratic Socialists of America have preferred ideological purity. Nationally, the group has split from U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over Middle Eastern politics; locally the group moved to expel state Rep. Mike Connolly over similar compromises. (Connolly walked away from the group.)
Chavez has favored candidates from other parties, specifically Claudia De la Cruz and Karine Gracia of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, as president and vice president, respectively. She is considering writing in these candidates on her ballots, while knowing her votes would have little impact.
Her hope for November is that “people will engage more deeply in politics beyond just voting,” emphasizing that there are more crucial aspects to democracy than just casting a ballot.
A stronger
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lol…socialism? o.k….few of that crowd grasp anything other than the possibility of scoring something free…defund this or that…affordability as a form of leveling rather than earning…volunterism and national service rarely surface as part of the dialogue of this crew….nor does real struggle.
Maybe civics should be re-introduced to the 7th grade curriculum….and intro reading and less babble to that more than voting thing
So Willow Carretero Chavez, a proud member of Boston DSA, says, “I don’t think [Kamala]Harris represents a meaningful change in terms of the actual policies, especially in respect to Palestine.”
And Willie Burnley Jr. and J.T. Scott, members of the Somerville City Council – and also members of Boston DSA – say they can’t endorse Kamala Harris.
So here’s a question for all three of you practitioners of purist politics.
Given that the following is a quote from DSA’s own statement from Oct 9, 2023- 2 days after Hamas slaughtered over 1,200 people in Israel (nearly all of whom were unarmed civilians – including many children, while also raping numerous women) how the hell can you call yourselves progressives while remaining in such a hateful and repugnant organization?
“We call upon everyone in the Boston area to express clear support for the Palestinian resistance, without conditions.” (Boston DSA, Oct 9, 2023).”
Maybe you ought to get off your high horses and take a good look in the mirror. Real progressives don’t belong to organizations that support cold blooded murder and rape!
:-) there are options as to where one lives for most of us. But if you gonna, or can, stick around , let me recommend, “The Federalist Papers”
Good luck with that Palestinian thing…and how you deliver it.
There are other places to live, yes?