This week, I had the pleasure of sitting down for a cordial debate with Sam Harris, host of the “Making Sense” podcast, to discuss the question of the hour: Trump vs. Harris. The conversation was moderated by Bari Weiss of The Free Press. Sam is, of course, an incredibly intelligent person; he’s also a person with a core set of values. He freely acknowledged his own discomfort with many of Kamala Harris’ positions in the campaign. But in the end, he said that he would vote for Harris because of one dispositive argument: Donald Trump could not be president thanks to his antics surrounding Election 2020.
I took the opposing view.
While freely acknowledging that Trump’s behavior between Nov. 4, 2020, and Jan. 6, 2021, was wrong, I argued that the Constitutional checks and balances had held and would continue to do so. What is more, I argued, Donald Trump should be elected because his presidency was far more successful for America than her vice presidency.
Under Trump, the economy boomed, inflation remained low, job growth was robust; under Trump, the border remained relatively calm and became increasingly so over time; under Trump, the Middle East was beginning to flower into actual peace thanks to the Abraham Accords and a contained Iran.
Under Harris, the economy had experienced the highest inflation rates in four decades; the border had been purposefully left wide-open, with at least 6.5 million illegal immigrants entering the country; Afghanistan had been handed over to the Taliban in the most cowardly and ignominious fashion possible, resulting in billions in lost military technology and 13 murdered American service people; Iran had unleashed its proxies against Israel, beginning on Oct. 7, continuing through a wave of rocket fire from Lebanon via Hezbollah, and culminating in multiple Iranian attacks directly against Israel; the social fabric had been rent by intersectional wokeness, dividing Americans along racial and sexual lines; the federal government had been weaponized against political opposition and militarized on behalf of friends of the Democratic Party.
So, in short, Sam argued against Trump; I argued for Trump and against Harris.
You may notice an argument missing in this formulation: the argument for Kamala Harris.
That’s because the argument doesn’t exist.
You can argue against Trump; you can argue for him. But nobody can credibly argue in favor of Kamala Harris.
Not even Kamala Harris.
That’s been the story of her campaign: what she’s not. She’s not Donald Trump. Fair enough. She’s not Joe Biden. Fair enough. But she can’t answer how she would be different from Biden, other than not physically being Joe Biden. She can’t answer what she would do to improve the country; every time she’s asked, she resembles a 10th-grader informed there’s a pop quiz on a book she hasn’t read.
And it is absolutely unclear whether Americans are willing to make Kamala Harris president just because they dislike Donald Trump. They tried that formula in 2020, and it resulted in the single worst presidency since Jimmy Carter’s. It turns out that this time, the American people might want to hear a convincing affirmative case in favor of the Democratic candidate for president — a candidate who, unlike Biden, did not win a single vote in the primaries, and who was shoehorned in at the last minute to prevent Biden’s impending collapse in the polls.
Will Kamala Harris become president? If she does, it won’t be because of Kamala Harris. She’s a nothing, an empty vessel, a fresh coat of paint slapped on the beat-up jalopy of the Biden administration. And with the choice starkly before them, Americans might be able to answer the question between Trump and Harris quite simply:
Were you better off in 2019 than in 2024?
Ben Shapiro’s new collection, “Facts and Furious: The Facts About America and Why They Make Leftists Furious,” is available now. Shapiro is a graduate of UCLA and Harvard Law School, host of “The Ben Shapiro Show,” and co-founder of Daily Wire+. He is a three-time New York Times bestselling author. To find out more about Ben Shapiro and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website.
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Trump is America first, Commie Harris is America last. Its that simple.
Well written article but I respectfully disagree with the very first paragraph. Trump responded to the 2020 steal exactly as he should have and actually with great care and reverence to not only our Constitution but the general rule of law. Unfortunately VP Mike Pence didn’t have the courage of his conviction, but it’s understandable given the insanity and utter brutality of the far left Democrats he would have no doubtably been subject to. Pelosi, well we all know the deal with her by now and if you don’t I don’t care, by now if you aren’t caught up on everything and/or are still undecided you are either incredibly busy or very slow on the drawer. Trump did right in 2020 the Dems
Ms Harris will not become the President. Worry about something else.
Harris is a lying, phony, vacuous woman of low morals and ambitions beyond her capabilities. Electing her would be a huge mistake. I just can’t understand why almost half of America could support her! I’d like to think we’re smarter than that, but look at what public education, colleges, and most of the media are doing to us.
Recently, harris said events on Jan. 6 killed several law enforcement officers. And no one challenged her! Only one person died that day, and it was a veteran who entered through a broken window and was shot by a policeman. Others died after the event, from stroke, suicide, and other causes. What a mess that was, mishandled by Pelosi and Capitol Police, and purposely molded by the democrats to shape public opinion. Meanwhile, hundreds (?) of people languish in jails from that event, while thousands who caused such mayhem, destruction, and death (35 of them) with the Antifa and Black Lives Matter riots before that are free to enjoy their lives.
Elected officials holding the highest positions in the country need to have substantive answers at-the-ready and must react sometimes within seconds to an issue of life or death. Judging by harris’ inability to think on her feet and to come up with concrete, fact-based responses, she should not be anywhere near the White House. I’m tired of hearing about “circle back” and “I have a plan for that”.
We need to elect candidates who think and act logically, rather than emotionally. Electing a person based on race, gender, and support for low-priority fringe issues will not improve the economy, will not secure the border, and will not keep us safe in our communities.
Everyone…please vote to MAGA! I’ve read that 30 million Christians ordinarily do not vote. C’mon, people. Help save our country!