As one might have expected from his history of political campaigning, former President Donald Trump has begun labeling the woman looking to keep him from regaining his residence in the White House with a bevy of nicknames.
As Vice President Kamala Harris takes over as the presumptive Democrat nominee for the Presidency in the wake of incumbent President Joe Biden’s stunning removal of himself from the race for re-election, Trump has already attempted to create disparaging ways of referring to her, as he has done with virtually all of his past political opponents.
The tactics come even as many in his own political party are urging talking points that shy away from personal attacks on Harris.
Trump has termed the sitting Vice President “Laffin’ Kamala” in an attempt to mock the way she laughs and “Lyin’ Kamala” when alleging she has been complicit in hiding what Republicans have deemed the degenerative effects of Biden’s advanced age from the public.
He has also referred to Harris as “crazy,” “nuts” and “dumb as a rock.”
Another trend that has emerged in the GOP’s attacks on Harris is to label her a “DEI hire” – a term referencing “diversity, equity and inclusion” initiatives at companies looking to help in the defeat of all forms of discrimination in the workforce.
Disparagingly calling someone a “DEI hire” is often code for calling them unqualified and suggesting they were given opportunities because of reasons that aren’t job-related.
“Going after Kamala Harris as a ‘DEI hire’ is breathtakingly stupid,” Republican pollster Whit Ayres told Reuters. Ayres has worked on political campaigns in Florida for nationally-recognized politicians like Senator Marco Rubio and Governor Ron DeSantis, among others.
“It’s going to backfire,” Ayres said, suggesting that Republicans instead attack the “incredible array of far left-wing policies” Harris believes in.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, reportedly echoed those sentiments during a closed-door meeting with GOP leaders.
“This campaign will be about policies,” Johnson told Reuters. “And I think everybody will be discussing that in detail, and I think we’ll win on that basis.”
Whether or not the man at the top of the party’s ticket heeds that advice remains to be seen.