Weekly Opinion Editorial
PEOPLE LIKE REFORM!
by Steve Fair
During an
annual performance evaluation with their supervisor, a salesperson is told they
have failed to achieve the agreed upon results for the past 3 ½
years. It is pointed out they failed in virtually every area and
their lack of productivity was unacceptable. In fact, the territory
is in worse shape since it was assigned to them. The salesperson
doesn’t argue with their superior’s gauging, but instead brazenly asks for a
promotion. “If you will promote me, reward me with a more
prestigious position and title, I promise to fix everything I have messed up,” they
promise. The boss gives them high marks for boldness and arrogance,
but low ones for accomplishment, perception and discernment. They
are not promoted, but terminated. Those scenarios play out every day
in the business world. Low-productive employees don’t get promoted
in the real world- they get fired. That is seldom the case in
politics.
In a well
delivered 37 ½ minute speech on Thursday evening at the Democratic National
Convention, Vice President Kamala Harris accepted her Parties’ nomination and
loudly proclaimed, “We are not going back, America!” She
promised to give the middle class a tax cut (Trump idea), stop illegal
immigration at the southern border (Trump did that), and get inflation under
control. In her speech, she hammered former President Donald Trump’s
policy positions in some areas and pilfered others as her own. Three
observations:
First,
most Americans want to go back. Four years ago, the southern border
was secure. Americans were paying 20% less for groceries and 40%
less for gasoline. The prime interest rate was less than half of
what it is today. Businesses were expanding. Jobs were
being created. Manufacturing was returning to
America. Fast forward to 2024 and 75% of Americans say they are
worse off economically than they were four years ago. The majority
of Americans would happily go back to when the border was secure and inflation
wasn’t out of control.
Second,
Harris has huge blind spots. A personality blind spot is a
trait or aspect of a person that they are unaware of but that can affect their
behavior, thoughts, and actions. Blind spots can be attitudes, beliefs,
emotions, or habits. They can limit a person's effectiveness and make it
difficult to grow personally or professionally. Everyone has blind
spots but how a person deals with them defines their character and
values. Blind spots can cause major damage if not
acknowledged.
Harris’s
blind spot is her inability or unwillingness to accept responsibility for her
own actions. She wants America to promote her when she failed in the
job she was hired to do. Like an arrogant, clueless, unperceptive
salesperson who wants to be rewarded for poor performance and ineffectiveness,
Harris can not honestly evaluate her own performance.
Three,
Harris can still win. America is a divided country. The
Democrats appear to be energized and united around their
nominee. Republicans are infighting and
feuding. Elections are about who votes. Harris will have
a strong get out to vote effort. Republicans
should be prepared to be as effective at getting their infrequent voters to the
polls.
In the
movie, O Brother, Where Art Thou,” Junior tells his daddy, Governor Pappy
ODaniel the reason their reelection campaign is languishing is because their
opponent is a ‘reform’ candidate. Junior notes: “People like that
reform. Maybe we should get some of that reform daddy.” Pappy
hits him in the head with his hat and says “I’ll reform you, you soft
headed dufus- we’re the incumbent.”
Elected officials have a track record and they either run on that record or from it. Harris is running from her record. Her campaign strategy is to borrow Trump’s most popular policy positions, use clever slogans and hyperbole to deflect attention from that track record. Junior Odaniel must be Harris’ political strategist, because she is running as the ‘reform’ candidate and she is the incumbent.
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