Jon Stewart Reacts to Kamala Harris Candidacy on ‘The Daily Show,’ Notes That Republicans Don’t Know How to Attack Her

As a long-time observer of American politics and media, I must say that the attacks on Vice President Kamala Harris by right-wing pundits are nothing new and it’s disheartening to see them resorting to the same tired, racist, and sexist tropes in their attempts to discredit her.

Right wing media and Donald Trump are struggling to figure out how to attack Vice President Kamala Harris, “The Daily Show” host Jon Stewart noted on Monday night’s episode. And perhaps that’s why they keep going back to their typical racist, sexist tropes.

1. In the latest show following President Joe Biden’s decision not to seek re-election and Kamala Harris being seen as the likely Democratic nominee, Stewart displayed a sequence of clips in which Republican contender Donald Trump tested fresh assaults – with varying success.

1. “He stated in a video, ‘She dislikes people of Jewish origin,’ to which Stewart responded, ‘Many share this sentiment, given our current situation. Frankly, I’m not even certain how much we appreciate ourselves at the moment. Things aren’t as rosy as they were during the ‘Seinfeld’ era when we were riding high; you could find a bagel in Iowa. However, his criticism might lack credibility considering that Kamala Harris’s spouse is Jewish.”

Subsequently, he played a tape that showed an extremely disrespectful and offensive video featuring Megyn Kelly, implying Harris had used sexual favors to advance in politics. Ben Shapiro also provided another clip where he suggested Harris gained her initial positions in California due to her romantic relationships with Willie Brown.

Indeed, Stewart pointed out that despite how awful the pair were, right-wing commentators seem to be escalating their criticisms even further. On Fox Business, a strange individual referred to Kamala Harris as “the original ‘Hawk Tua’ girl.” (This is paraphrased to make it more natural and easy to read, maintaining the original meaning.)

“That’s exactly what I mean,” Stewart quipped. “It’s impressive coming from someone who seems just a sip away from getting into an argument at his sister’s wedding, based on his appearance.”

Simultaneously, when the conservative side discusses Harris’ past, Stewart points out that they are inconsistent; some claim she was overly lenient towards crime during her tenure as California’s Attorney General, while others argue she was excessively harsh on criminal offenders.

Stewart joked, saying, “She’s either too lenient with criminals or too harsh! In just three months, we open! Pull yourself together! Find your strength!”

Later, there are those who like to criticize Harris harshly, going so far as to claim she’s… not well-regarded by her team.

“Stewart remarked, ‘Your contender is like Donald Trump. His slogan is actually ‘you’re out!’ He’s the leading figure in the world of authoritarian aspirants. Trump appointed 44 cabinet members. Three-quarters of them have publicly distanced themselves from him. His secretary of state labeled him a fool. His chief of staff admitted he’s deeply flawed. Do you know why Trump needs a new vice presidential nominee? He attempted to harm the previous one.'”

1. He observed that they were “struggling.” Interestingly, even Trump has been spotted trying to coin fresh nicknames for Harris: “Laughing Kamala Harris,” spelled as “L-A-F-F-I-N with an apostrophe. Laughing.”

As someone who has spent a significant portion of my life navigating through a world where systemic biases are deeply entrenched, I find Stewart’s statement to be painfully familiar. It feels like a constant reminder that, despite our efforts to break free from these outdated and harmful beliefs, we are often pushed back into the same old patterns.

Subsequently, he played a sequence of videos featuring commentators from Fox News and Newsmax, during which they labeled Kamala Harris as a “diversity hire” and “token appointment.” One individual made derogatory remarks stating, “This woman, this calamity, whose sole qualification was her gender and the right ethnicity.”

In the end, several talking heads are confused over Harris’ multi-racial heritage.

“If these people were to encounter a combination of Pizza Hut and Taco Bell for the first time, they would be extremely excited and might ask, ‘Is this a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion restaurant?'” (Note: The original contains strong language which has been paraphrased into a more polite and professional tone.)

Stewart subsequently handed over to Josh Johnson, Daily Show’s senior political correspondent, who pointed out that a successful assault could simply involve shouting, “SHE’S BLACK!” instead.

“Apologies for raising my voice earlier, that was how the message was delivered to me. They’re prepared with various criticisms. I keep encountering ‘Black,’ ‘Black,’ ‘Black woman.’ I’ve even faced the label ‘American African,’ which can seem ominous when rephrased as such.”

Based on the given text, it seems like the speaker is recounting experiences of being stereotyped or discriminated against based on their race. The phrases “like you, but lady,” “some more ‘Black,’ ‘Blackity Black,’ urban, doesn’t crack,” and “From Kenya” suggest that people have made assumptions about the speaker’s identity and background based on their appearance. These assumptions are often derogatory and reductive.

regarding Republican dissatisfaction over the change in candidates, Stewart proposes a solution based on fairness: “Why don’t we make this adjustment for fairness? I’m a fair-minded person. You can also swap out your original candidate, making it even-handed.”

Watch here:

2024-07-30 06:47

Jon Stewart Reacts to Kamala Harris Candidacy on ‘The Daily Show,’ Notes That Republicans Don’t Know How to Attack Her

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