# The Kamala Harris thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** kamala-harris\ **Created:** [October 20, 2018, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236 "2018-10-20T03:08:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2019, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/121 "2019-01-26T01:03:59Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > I’m from California and Kamala Harris favorably impressed me – smart, principled, energetic, and not tied to Big anything. She is not as easy to pigeonhole as Warren and Sanders. > > I’m sure the Right will hate her to death for being a woman far more than being any non-white race. [Apparently some on the right hate her for “not being an American citizen”](https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/unraveling-controversy-over-kamala-harris-232600049.html). Yes, folks; Birtherisim is back. Well, it never left. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2019, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/122 "2019-01-26T02:03:42Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Yes, folks; Birtherisim is back. Well, it never left. It didn’t even skip the 2016 cycle. Between Obama and Harris there was another target for it - Ted Cruz. [Is Ted Cruz eligible to be President?](https://www.cnn.com/2015/03/24/politics/ted-cruz-eligibility-2016-elections/) CNN wasn’t wrong. There were court cases questioning whether Cruz was eligible to be on the ballot in some places. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/123 "2019-01-29T19:02:24Z")
I’ll say about Harris what I’ve said from the beginning: she’s a strong candidate on paper who will lose all her support when she has to debate. Her townhall where she called for an end to private insurance is just the first of many statements that will sink her, and that’s before we’ve even delved into her record as California AG. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/124 "2019-01-29T19:51:48Z")
After much discussion and back-and-forthing, California finally decided to move their primaries to March so that we can have more input into who are actually the candidates. This is going to have a very strong impact on Harris’s chances to be the candidate. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/125 "2019-01-29T19:58:18Z")
As I mentioned before, she will play well to the traditional/current base of the Democrats, but unless she attains some crossover appeal, she cannot win against Trump. I tend to think the voters will be automatic 40% D and 40% R, with the remaining 20% up for grabs. Trying to understand the 20% and what would sway their vote may be hard to do, but looking at the last election, you can get a picture of who is in that 20% - and I have concern about their interest in getting behind someone like Harris. Hopefully, as her positions become more public and widely known, it will become more clear her potential. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/126 "2019-01-29T20:00:36Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > I’ll say about Harris what I’ve said from the beginning: she’s a strong candidate on paper who will lose all her support when she has to debate. Her townhall where she called for an end to private insurance is just the first of many statements that will sink her, and that’s before we’ve even delved into her record as California AG. Do you think there is a large constituency that likes private medical insurance? ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/127 "2019-01-29T20:22:34Z")
There \*is \*a large constituency that \*hates \*anything they can be told is a “government takeover of health care”. So it amounts to the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/128 "2019-01-29T20:39:50Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > There \*is \*a large constituency that \*hates \*anything they can be told is a “government takeover of health care”. So it amounts to the same thing. But don’t take away their medicare. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/129 "2019-01-29T20:43:14Z")
[A disturbing number of images](https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1513&bih=920&ei=n7pQXJqaNuu8ggebi5ygAw&q=keep+your+government+hands+off+my+medicare&oq=government+hands+off+m&gs_l=img.1.1.0j0i5i30l3.1259.4103..6404...0.0..1.296.3389.0j18j4......0....1..gws-wiz-img.....0..0i8i30j0i24.CqoboH6kvSo) of “KEEP YOUR GOVERNMENT HANDS OFF MY MEDICARE” signs at rallies. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/130 "2019-01-29T21:02:18Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Her townhall where she called for an end to private insurance is just the first of many statements that will sink her, and that’s before we’ve even delved into her record as California AG. [The Republicans are trying to spin her answer that way, but watch the actual video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJhuPtIsUI0). While her answer clearly signals to progressive voters that she wants to eliminate private insurance, it also gives her plausible deniability if she gets called out on it later. Truly a Hillary-worthy answer. (Of course Medicare for everyone would not eliminate private insurance. Medicare has not eliminated private insurance for old people. Has she ever heard of a Medicare Supplement Plan? But I digress.) ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/131 "2019-01-29T22:42:26Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > I’m a California resident, and I think Kamala Harris is fantastic. How many others agree with me, I can’t say. I’m in Virginia and I’m all out for Harris ::high five:: ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/132 "2019-01-29T22:58:13Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > After much discussion and back-and-forthing, California finally decided to move their primaries to March so that we can have more input into who are actually the candidates. This is going to have a very strong impact on Harris’s chances to be the candidate. That’s true if it’s a delegate race to the end. In terms of momentum it can only hurt. Home state candidates have to win their primaries and it gives them no momentum when they do. If they don’t win their home state, the race is over. But if it does come down to just numbers of delegates, California is a delegate rich state. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/133 "2019-01-29T23:02:24Z")
Jonathan Chait thinks an answer she gave, vague as it was, was a sign that she would _outlaw_ private health insurance. He thinks that’s too extreme. > **[Kamala Harris: Eliminate Private Health Insurance. That’s a Huge Political Risk.](https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/01/kamala-harris-would-end-private-health-insurance.html)** > > A very worthy ambition that could really hurt in a general election. Isn’t it more likely that she’ll try to make private insurance _no longer necessary,_ letting supplemental insurance exist as it can? Anyway, if she is trying to replace private insurance, that makes me like her more. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/134 "2019-01-29T23:08:07Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Do you think there is a large constituency that likes private medical insurance? 80% of Americans like their insurance. There’s a reason Obama had to promise no one would lose their insurance. Support for Medicare for All drops to 37% once people are told they lose their private insurance: [https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/medicare-for-all-poll/](https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/medicare-for-all-poll/) **But when the Kaiser poll told them that “Medicare for all” would eliminate private insurance companies, support collapsed. Just 37% said they back it knowing it would mean getting rid of their existing health plans.** ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2019, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/135 "2019-01-29T23:14:30Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > 80% of Americans like their insurance. There’s a reason Obama had to promise no one would lose their insurance. > > Support for Medicare for All drops to 37% once people are told they lose their private insurance: Wow. If true, that shows why I could never get elected. I don’t have my finger on the pulse of the American electorate. On the other hand, it seems like a number that could shift dramatically with a little education. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2019, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/136 "2019-01-30T00:05:06Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > 80% of Americans like their insurance. There’s a reason Obama had to promise no one would lose their insurance. > > Support for Medicare for All drops to 37% once people are told they lose their private insurance: > > [https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/medicare-for-all-poll/](https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/medicare-for-all-poll/) > > **But when the Kaiser poll told them that “Medicare for all” would eliminate private insurance companies, support collapsed. Just 37% said they back it knowing it would mean getting rid of their existing health plans.** I wonder how many will back it once they know it also involves attaching venomous snakes to their genitals. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2019, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/137 "2019-01-30T00:55:08Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > 80% of Americans like their insurance. There’s a reason Obama had to promise no one would lose their insurance. > > Support for Medicare for All drops to 37% once people are told they lose their private insurance: > > [https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/medicare-for-all-poll/](https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/medicare-for-all-poll/) > > **But when the Kaiser poll told them that “Medicare for all” would eliminate private insurance companies, support collapsed. Just 37% said they back it knowing it would mean getting rid of their existing health plans.** Medicare for All wouldn’t necessarily eliminate private insurance companies. After all, Medicare supplemental plans exist. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2019, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/138 "2019-01-30T02:10:40Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > (Of course Medicare for everyone would not eliminate private insurance. Medicare has not eliminated private insurance for old people. Has she ever heard of a Medicare Supplement Plan? But I digress.) It depends on the proposal. The most-discussed bill, AFAIK, is the one introduced by Bernie Sanders (which I think Senator Harris has co-sponsored), which _would_ eliminate private insurance as well as repeal and replace Medicare. “Medicare For All”, in that case, does _not_ mean putting the entire population on Medicare, it means creating a new program called “Medicare” and hoping that people’s good feelings for the current program extend to a whole new thing just because it would share the name. (I actually support the ends, but I’m incredibly pessimistic about the means.) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2019, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/139 "2019-01-30T02:28:44Z")
80% of Americans don’t like the insurance they have now, because the vast majority of Americans have no idea what their insurance is like. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2019, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236/140 "2019-01-30T02:36:00Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > 80% of Americans don’t like the insurance they have now, because the vast majority of Americans have no idea what their insurance is like. valid argument but also just as true of Medicare and foreign health care systems. Politicians don’t know what it is either, or they just lie about it, because they say Medicare ‘covers everything medically necessary’, which is absolutely false unless you define ‘medically necessary’ exactly how Blue Cross and Aetna define it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kamala-harris-thread/823236.md?page=8)