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As the US presidential election gets closer, the polls are getting scarier for Kamala Harris. She is losing the margin she had over her Republican opponent and, unless she pulls a rabbit out of the hat, she might lose the election.
When Harris replaced President Joe Biden as the Democratic candidate, there was a glitz factor among the electorate. She had a clear lead over Donald Trump. However, this margin started eroding, probably because her campaign was more about attacking Trump than providing the American people with convincing answers to their concerns. In interviews, her entire narrative has been focused on stating how dangerous and unstable Trump is. However, she has not clarified what she plans to do should she become president. At least, she has not explained it to the average American in a plain, concrete manner.
She is banking on the idea that people will rush to vote for her to keep Trump out, but this will not necessarily be the case. People who are not convinced by her will not give their vote to either candidate. Therefore, it is not necessarily right that, if they hate Trump, they will line up to vote for her. Harris has been taking her original base, which is largely made up of minorities, progressives, Arabs and Muslims, for granted and instead trying to court white men without a college degree. She has been touring with Liz Cheney instead of with someone like Bernie Sanders.
However, the latest polls should be a wake-up call. Harris needs to do something of value to earn voters’ trust. Hence, she should take advantage of the fact that CIA Director Bill Burns was back in Doha this week to push a ceasefire down the throat of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. What the US is proposing is a partial deal that involves the release of some Israeli hostages and some Palestinian prisoners and a pause in the fighting. Of course, Hamas did not agree to that plan. The Palestinians need a complete end to the fighting.
She is banking on the idea that people will rush to vote for her to keep Trump out, but this will not necessarily be the case
Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib
Harris can help push for an end to the war. It is very simple. Yahya Sinwar is dead and the fighting in Gaza is minimal; it is time for the hostages to go home. A deal can be pushed through before next week’s election. Also, as it is just a few days before the election, it is too late for the pro-Israel lobby to hurt her. She needs to push for a ceasefire deal, otherwise it is finished. By pushing for an agreement, she will show she has the leadership the country needs. Public opinion can change overnight.
If she demonstrates such leadership, many who are hesitant about voting for her will decide to do so. She needs to act fast. The US was able to pressure Netanyahu into a mere token response to Iran’s missile attack on Israel. There is a deal on the table that reportedly plans to end the conflict in three weeks. It starts with a ceasefire, an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a prisoner exchange. Harris could also show she is firm on Lebanon by insisting on the 21-day ceasefire that was suggested by the US last month but Netanyahu refused. The US could then push, during those three weeks, for the Lebanese to elect a president and form a government that will be responsible for implementing UN resolutions.
It is time to show leadership. The fact the current administration cannot even pressure Netanyahu to end his carnage, his genocide, does not reflect well on Harris. Especially since Trump is claiming he will quickly end the war if he is elected. This is how he is courting Arab Americans in Michigan. Regardless of whether people view Trump as erratic or unhinged, he takes pride in claiming that he delivers on his promises. A tagline in his 2020 campaign was “Promises made, promises kept.”
On the other hand, Americans are fed up with the current administration’s hypocrisy. It mourns the women and children of Gaza while giving Netanyahu the bombs to kill them. And in the end, the White House says it does not have leverage over Netanyahu. When you have such an attitude, it is highly unlikely anyone will trust your leadership.
The fact the current administration cannot even pressure Netanyahu to end his carnage does not reflect well on Harris
Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib
Harris needs to act fast because the numbers are not in her favor. Polling by FiveThirtyEight shows Trump being ahead, though only by a small margin, in Nevada, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, Wisconsin and Arizona. Hence, Trump is ahead in six of the seven swing states that will decide the election. Harris definitely needs to be worried and she definitely needs to act fast.
The attitude that Harris has displayed so far will not serve her well in the election. While campaigning in August, she was interrupted by pro-Palestine protesters and, instead of showing compassion, she said: “I am speaking.” Is this the way she thinks she can win the hearts and the minds of the American people? She cannot win like this. She must show compassion and leadership.
The current administration has sent top aide Jon Finer to Michigan to try to court Arab Americans. However, statements made by the likes of Finer do not make any difference unless they are coupled with decisive action. And showing compassion in private while there is no firm public position is viewed as hypocrisy. Only a few days are left until the election. Harris has to pull a rabbit out of the hat. This rabbit is a ceasefire.
- Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib is a specialist in US-Arab relations with a focus on lobbying. She is co-founder of the Research Center for Cooperation and Peace Building, a Lebanese nongovernmental organization focused on Track II.