Kamala Harris might be as unlikeable as Hillary Clinton, it's that bad. To her, nothing is more important than to be unburdened by what has been. Spokespeople for her campaign keep letting the media know that she's changed her stance on just about everything she called for during her 2020 run for president, including banning fracking and offshore drilling. The press hasn't asked her to explain any of these flip-flops.
And there's the cackle. She's cackles at inappropriate times. It's grating. Or is it? Maybe it's just part of her "oddball charm."
Kamala Harris’s viral moments are fun to watch, because they show a serious person having, well, fun, writes @skornhaber. She hasn’t just reset the presidential election—her oddball charms match the cultural moment. https://t.co/osM2YrBp8I
— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) August 5, 2024
Spencer Kornhaber writes:
Across the internet, funny clips of Harris are making the rounds, some of them unearthed from years earlier. There’s one of her talking to a 10-year-old about carnitas tacos in a tone of utmost solemnity. There’s one of her impersonating her mother-in-law, squealing, “You’re prettier than you are on television!” And, of course, there’s the coconut-tree speech, related in sing-song inflections, whipping from stand-up routine to sermon. Republicans have tried to use quirky Harris clips to mock her. But these videos have mostly been circulated by gleeful supporters, who are parsing and remixing them like sports highlights.
…
To compare the first female vice president to influencers and pop stars is obviously a loaded exercise. But the affectionate memeification of Harris is, in fact, explicitly gendered: She’s being treated in the same terms as so many social-media phenoms cheered as “girlie” or “mother.” That’s not only because she’s a symbol of feminine power. It’s probably because people who don’t fit neatly within stereotypes about gender—or race, sexuality, or other identity categories—tend to have to invent some part of their personality. This invention process feeds today’s attention economy, which is all about sharing teensy audiovisual treats. A fun mannerism, a new tic, is like a delicacy.
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Kornhaber notes that the Harris campaign has adopted "Charli XCX’s Brat, an experimental pop album about doing cocaine and having social anxiety. This was inexplicable on the level of substance but made some sense as style. Brats don’t hide who they are, and neither, it feels, does Harris."
It's false that Republicans have tried to use quirky Harris clips to mock her. Republicans have used quirky Harris clips to mock her, successfully.
You post this today of all days?#KamalaCrash
— MirCat (@TRMirCat) August 5, 2024
“Oddball charms”? Are you saying Kamala is…weird?
— 🫃🏼💉🇺🇦🥥Hollaria Briden, Esq. (@HollyBriden) August 5, 2024
Hey @TheAtlantic, I thought you were required to disclose campaign ads...
— Okay 🇺🇸 (@mythbuster1304) August 5, 2024
She isn't a serious person.
— Hermes (@PointMytikas) August 5, 2024
And this is more fluff for a candidate that didn't receive a single primary vote.
It’s a target rich environment.😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/Fae9RcFR8b
— Phil (@Phil6741400) August 5, 2024
Can she do a serious, unscripted interview?
— 30RoE (@30RoE) August 5, 2024
Comical how they try to spin the awkwardness of someone that does this weird behavior because they are nervous and can't answer the most basic of questions.
— Organic Oracle Outlaw 🤠 (@OrganicOracle) August 5, 2024
This is next level. Truly.
— Chill (@Chillcatser) August 5, 2024
"Odd ball charms" is a rather interesting way to say weird.
— Alexa*pushingsnoozeoverandover (@spiritfeeler) August 5, 2024
Back in late July, Tom Elliott noted that CNN and MSNBC had managed to work in the “Vance is weird” talking point more than 150 times. But Harris isn't weird … she has the power of oddball charm.
She's a phony who continues to rise above her competence because she is a useful idiot to someone.
— la costurera diabólica (@hdighn) August 5, 2024
Can you maybe run a story on her policy?
— Keebler (@keebler45) August 5, 2024
Not a serious person. Watching her manufactured "viral moments", knowing she may end up in charge of the nation I love, is the opposite of fun.
— Plains Sense (@PlainsSense) August 5, 2024
It's frightening to think that this oddball charm is working on some voters. And what we need in the Oval Office now more than ever is some oddball charm.
Sounding like a day drinking kindergarten teacher is not charming or oddball it's just creepy
— StrawmXn of Steel (@CommaChameleon6) August 5, 2024
Kamala is weird, here's why that's a good thing- The Atlantic
— Lili von Shtupp (@LvS_Redux) August 5, 2024
You know you can't just "vibe" her to a win? She won't even do an unscripted interview with friendly outlets where she is guaranteed a softball interview, because doesn't know anything. And now the economic bubble has burst. If she is serious, she needs to start proving it.
— Randall Flagg (@FlaggTheRaven) August 5, 2024
We still haven't heard her answer a journalist's question since she magically became the Democrat nominee. She'll stick to appearances on "The View" where the hosts all share her vibe.
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