The 2024 Democrat Presidential Ticket that was Twenty Years in the Making

The Democrat Party has completely sabotaged itself by running the absolute worst ticket that could have been chosen against its rival. The vapid empty-pantsuit Kamala Harris teamed with military record fabricator and outright freak Tim Walz is a recipe for electoral disaster against the formidable Donald Trump and J.D. Vance.

Why did Democrats nullify the choice of 14 million primary voters and install Kamala Harris as the presidential nominee instead of holding an open convention primary? Were there no other contenders aside from the one that is uniquely incapable of facing Donald Trump? Why are Democrats and the media trying so hard to hide the Harris-Walz policy platform by refusing unscripted interviews and press conferences?

We all know the answers to the above questions, yet it might be useful to look at how we got to this place. It was largely due to a single person who promised to “fundamentally transform the United States of America.”

When Junior Senator from Illinois Barack Obama was introduced to the nation at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, he was completely unknown to most Americans and, in fact, to most Democrats. His keynote address at the convention catapulted him into stardom among Democrats and began his upward rise within party ranks.

Having a decent senatorial record and no controversial baggage, Obama would eventually run for president as the “Hope and Change” candidate to appeal to voters exhausted from the two terms of George W. Bush, especially in the aftermath of the 2008 economic meltdown.

Running victoriously as the anti-Bush gave Obama a lot of media cover for his lifelong radical beliefs and real intentions to govern as a leftist. It didn’t hurt that the American electorate was tired of two endless wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Democrats treated Obama not so much as a rock star but as an otherworldly being, the “Lightbringer.” (Remember his first inauguration?) His presence was given almost godlike attention, which aligned just fine with his high opinion of himself.

But the Democrats were blinded by their mindless adoration of Obama. They rationalized his lack of interaction with most members of Congress. They tolerated the luxury vacations the Obamas took two or three times per year and kept silent as Barack got in a round of golf three or four times per week. They allowed for Obama’s repeated racist rants and demonization of most white Americans as “bitter clingers” to their guns and God. He succeeded where Hillary Clinton’s “basket of deplorables” failed miserably in 2016 and cost her the election (and by not campaigning in critical swing states, thank God).

Obama was put on a pedestal by Democrats, who showered him with praise as a “political genius” and “master strategist” who outmaneuvered the Republicans at every turn. But this was just a coping mechanism to hide the truth: Obama was decimating the Democrat Party one issue, one deal, and one election at a time. Even the far-left elites saw this all the way back in 2017, as reported at the time by The Atlantic.

Obama’s first order of business as president was to nationalize America’s health care system. Why would Obama put so much political capital into crafting an unpopular, dangerous nuclear deal with Iran? Why would Obama so publicly obsess with left-wing celebrities, particularly those who would show up by the dozen at high-profile, taxpayer-funded state dinners?

Throughout his presidency, Obama took every important matter before the nation and internalized it, taking an approach that appealed not to Americans or even Democrats but to himself and his left-wing ideologies.

Possessing absolutely no self-awareness and having no understanding of his intellectual shortcomings, he proceeded with complete confidence in his wisdom. As a lawyer, he could argue his case to those who disagreed, even when it made no sense. Or he could simply call his challengers racist and the argument is instantly won.

Obama’s mellifluous voice and refined appearance appealed to those who would ignore his lightweight demeanor and shallow understanding of the issues. The entire Washington, D.C., apparatus was taken in by the very thought of Obama, the avatar on which any and all progressive thought and belief could be projected.

Democrats gave Obama and his Chicago handlers control of the party and wound up having to portray a radical policy agenda as “moderate.” Under Obama, center-left policymaking was shelved for “woke” radicalness that catered to fringe activist groups, alienating much of the population that customarily voted “D” out of tribal routine.

(Putting things in historical context, Obama’s rise coincided with the emergence of social media—Twitter and Facebook especially—in their infancy during his 2008 run, mobilizing young voters as well as Democrats who felt disenfranchised. By 2012, in his reelection bid against Mitt Romney (who should have won based on being on the correct side of most issues), Obama won a race he should have lost. In retrospect, we can’t minimize the impact of social media on every race since 2012.)

Democrats running for office were subjected to purity tests to see if they were sufficiently supportive of radical far-left orthodoxy. These leftist concepts were not new by any stretch, but they were repackaged and forced onto the public by Obama and his Chicago handlers with sometimes grudging cooperation by Democrat moderates.

Obama’s fascination with billionaires led to an emerging oligarchy, especially in the tech sector, tightening its grip on the government at large. His penchant for “settling scores” resulted in the weaponization of nearly every government agency against American citizens. Race relations were set back to the 1950’s. Inequality skyrocketed. The Tea Party emerged. Donald Trump was elected. Russiagate was birthed. And it all happened with Obama in the White House.

The Obama years didn’t end well for Democrats. When Obama took office in 2008, there were 55 Senate seats and 256 House seats held by Democrats. After Obama’s second term ended in 2016, Democrats had lost 9 seats in the Senate and 62 seats in the House. There were twelve fewer Democrat governors, with Democrats overall holding fewer elected offices nationwide at any time since the 1920s.

By handing over control of their party to Obama, Democrats destroyed the goodwill held by most of their center-left base. Americans rejected far-left policies and voted accordingly. Obama, for some reason, is still revered as a brilliant politician even when his record of destruction within his own party is plainly evident.

For all the platitudes of his political intellect and savvy manner of operation, Obama has been a down-ballot disaster for Democrats. But it has been a goldmine for Obama, who is now on his fourth mansion. While we don’t bemoan anyone from acquiring wealth, we have to wonder how anyone in the Democrat Party thinks they got their money’s worth with Obama.

The carnage left behind by Barack Obama has put Democrats in the electoral situation they find themselves in today. After all, it was Obama who convinced his vice president to drop out of the 2016 election because it was Hillary’s turn, allowing for a Trump victory.

We don’t think that Biden ever forgot that snub by his so-called “friend,” proven by his quick endorsement of Harris when he stepped down in July. This circumvented any opportunity by Democrat elites from the donor class to its operatives within the halls of Congress: Pelosi, (still the real House Minority Leader yielding immense power), Hakim Jeffries, and the ultimate Democrat simp, Chuck Schumer.

The presence of Tim Walz as the Democrat vice president nominee can also be attributed to Obama and his long-standing disdain for Israel. Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro was by far and away the best choice for VP, representing an essential swing state that Democrats need to have any chance of winning in November. Now Democrat power brokers are still trying to repair the damage.

But Shapiro is Jewish, and years of bubbling Democrat anti-Semitism were exacerbated by Obama’s bitter relations with Israeli leadership during his presidency. Add to this Obama’s longstanding fascination with Islam, which dates back to his youth, and it becomes clear that Shapiro’s qualifications were overshadowed simply because he is Jewish.

So America is stuck with a Harris-Walz Democratic presidential ticket. The Giggler and The Snitch, in true Batman ultra-villain style. And it’s all because the Democrats love Barack Obama more than he loves himself, which is saying something.

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Richard Truesdell is a former consumer electronics retail executive and automotive travel photojournalist. In the last 25 years, he has visited more than 35 countries on six continents. A former high school history teacher with a BA in Political Science from Waynesburg University, he is a lifelong Conservative moderate who has turned his thoughts and keyboard to political commentary and popular culture. A cross-section of his writings can be found here.

Keith Lehmann is a retired consumer electronics industry executive who has written extensively on technology, transportation, and international travel. Living in Southern California for over fifty years, he has first-hand exposure to societal and cultural happenings of the left and submits decidedly realism-based, Conservative viewpoints, much of which can be found on his Substack.