His mugshot would be excellent for this!!
I was one of those people vocally opposed to Biden stepping down. And when he actually did, my heart sank. I couldn’t imagine the Dems avoiding the debacle of a circular firing squad, and being so close to the convention, it all just seemed to spell disaster.
And now? I’ve realized I was wrong. It’s not that I didn’t like Harris, but I never expected this level of enthusiasm. Seeing the party essentially rallying around here, and seeing how upsetting this is to Trump and the GOP has brought a new sense of hope. I hope she absolutely destroys him and the MAGA movement.
I fully endorse this phrase and will be glad to use it.
Trump has shown that voters love arrogance. Kamala should try to out-arrogant Trump and show immense hubris. Confidence is always attractive.
I’m not surprised by the money. I think a lot of donors, large and small, have been sitting on the sidelines waiting for Biden to drop out, and now that the campaign has transitioned so incredibly smoothly to Harris, they’re ready to contribute.
As for her popularity, I’m waiting to see whether the polling (as unreliable as it may be) tells us how widespread the enthusiasm is. Are people relieved that Biden has dropped out, or are they actually motivated to get out and vote for Harris?
I think that its been a matter of keeping the eye on the prize, namely defeating Donald and not letting anything get in the way of that. While Harris may or may not be the best person for that job, she is the only person who can argue that they are uniquely qualified to take over Biden’s place, due to her position as VP. Any other candidate would have to argue and demonstrate why they would be better than Harris or other potential candidates, and there is not time for that. So it was either Harris, or infighting and a Trump victory.
This was probably made clear to all of the other potential candidates before Biden dropped out, and the party line memo of being excited about how wonderful Harris is was passed around the party, spokesman and donors.
The CT’er in me is actually wondering whether Biden actually has COVID or this was just an excuse to have him pull out from public to arrange his departure and Harris’ seamless ascension. (note: I don’t want to hijack so please don’t discuss in this thread whether or not my speculations on this are accurate)
I agree with the comments about a sense of relief. After the Republican convention last week, where it appears the party had coalesced around their ticket, while the Democrats appeared to be in a state of chaos, I felt unhopeful for this election. But now with the enthusiasm for Harris bubbling over (and consequently, stealing the Republicans’ thunder, heh-heh 
) I am much more hopeful for the outcome of this election. By switching horses, even this late, it seems like the Democrats have expanded their voter base, or at the very least illuminated it, while the Republicans, with selecting Vance, have not expanded to any voting groups beyond MAGA, which they already had in their pocket.
Yes! I was wondering, why am I not avoiding the news any more?
Some of both. I watched the debate and thought, “oh shit, Biden just lost the election”. And i no longer feel like it’s a certain loss. But also, i like Harris, and I’m excited for her to have a shot at the presidency.
Every time I see her debate I hope for some snark or sass but she is very locked down in her debates. Which is fine, she is bringing the facts and important points but it does come across a bit flat and uninspiring.
This is just a performance thing and not everyone is made to do it. I certainly think she has the smarts and competence for the job. She’s light years better than Trump.
The Harris enthusiasm isn’t because she’s a super candidate like Barack Obama or Bill Clinton; it’s because it’s just a huge, huge relief that she isn’t going to look like a great-grandparent who can’t be trusted to not wander off in confusion. Every Democrat in America is relieved THAT concern is gone.
If someone else had become VP in 2021 there might be even more enthusiasm - I admit I find Pete Buttigieg really, really impressive - but that’s not the case. This is a clean, no-one-got-screwed over move. Everyone in the party is lining up behind her. Talk of dumping the candidate is now gone because the dump happened and there is a very clear and competent successor. The Republicans are freaked out over this, which the Democrats must perceive as being a good sign. The best scenario would have been if Biden still seemed capable, of course, but he didn’t, so this is the next best possible outcome.
I just saw this:
I was also nervous about Biden dropping out but the news the last 2 days has certainly given me a bump of hope. Maybe a few more bumps than I imagined.
I agree with your last sentence, but she should not show arrogance or hubris. She should project strength and confidence. Trump is a master of arrogance. Nobody can out-arrogant Trump.
FWIW, reporting from the NY Times about Harris’ first official campaign rally:
In about an hour, Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to speak at her first rally as a 2024 presidential candidate here in a packed high school gym outside Milwaukee. The vibes are electric. It’s loud and people are singing along to music playing over the speakers. The words I’ve heard most often from supporters are “relieved” and “excited” about President Biden dropping out and Harris taking his place.
Ben Wikler, the chair of the Wisconsin Democrats, received a standing ovation as he took the stage. This is the loudest I’ve heard a crowd at a Democratic rally this year.
There’s definitely some enthusiasm out there! (And not just relief, IMO.)
And, of course, it is no accident this is in Milwaukee where the RNC just finished their convention.
True confidence beats bluster and arrogance.
I will never be enthusiastic for any politician. I am enthusiastically against Trump. I just have a huge sense of relief. Relief that the transition has been seamless. Relief that I don’t have to worry about the next misstep by Biden would be the one to bury him for good. Relief that the upcoming convention won’t be a test for Biden that he couldn’t afford to fail. One instance of looking feeble would be the only thing to come out of the convention. Now he can get a standing ovation at the convention. Give a short speech and have it all be about Harris.
Thunder-stealing! 
This again and again. This cannot be emphasized enough!
Again, this.
The election is so close in time-- the Democrats don’t have time to split and splinter over petty intramural differences. All the oars have to be in the water and pulling together.
I read somewhere a day or two ago that the Republican campaign has peaked too early. Okay, Donnie got shot-- BIG news. He was riding a big wave. Loud convention-- check. Long acceptance speech-- check. Over. Done. Here comes Joe and pulls the rug out from under him with an even YUGER political headline. And right behind Joe, here comes Kamala riding a bigger wave than trump’s. 
And I hope to God she and it swallow him up. I believe that is possible. I didn’t a week ago.
When I get excited, I spontaneously generate lots of metaphors,
Young voters usually skew Democrat. If those numbers were even, Trump would win by a landslide. Like, Reagan 1984.
In 2020 Biden carried voters 18-29 by essentially the same margin. In 2016, Clinton carried them 55-36… measurably worse, but we’ll see how further polling holds up. One poll isn’t much.