Because I advocate for racial justice and I primarily write about race and ethnicity, people often assume I must be a card-carrying Democrat.
But other than the last local election in Denver, where the primary essentially decided the winner, and I had to register as a Democrat if I wanted to vote for some important local candidates, I’ve been a registered independent since 1990.
My views on a wide range of topics aren’t monolithic.
While I think Republicans typically haven’t acknowledged the depth and breadth of our racial issues, and more recently reject them outright, many Democratic Party race-related policies and plans haven’t worked and, in some cases, even harmed people.
So, in any “normal” election (with no weird in the mix), I would weigh my most important and personal political issues and stack them against the candidates’ positions.
Over the years, that has sometimes meant making the hard choice between one candidate who may be better on one issue but worse on another issue that’s important to me.
As a result, I’ve voted for a mix of Democrats and Republicans for the last 30 years in local, state, House, Senate and presidential elections.
It’s why in 2012, when my then 12-year-old son asked me why his stepdad was voting for Mitt Romney and I was voting for Barack Obama, I could tell him, “They’re both good people. They both care about the country. They just have different priorities and ideas to help make Americans’ lives better.”
“Romney might care more about how much the government is taking from your paycheck, thinking that will help America, and Obama might be more focused on helping the most challenged in society and ensuring we take care of the planet. They both care about all those things but don’t put the same energy into these issues.”
Then, something happened in the 2016 election: Donald Trump.
I hadn’t paid much attention to him over the years. I never stayed in one of his hotels or gambled in a Trump Casino. I’ve never eaten a Trump Steak or read Trump Magazine. Never tried to get a degree from Trump University. I never drank Trump Vodka or watched Trump TV.
I once made it through half an episode of “The Apprentice” but wasn’t really interested. I don’t enjoy watching people betray other people. Now, zombies, that’s another story.
I may have muttered under my breath, “What an ass,” after seeing the way he talked to people on the show.
I vaguely recall his cameo in “Home Alone 2.”
I thought Trump was mildly entertaining the several times I heard him as a guest on “The Howard Stern Show.” But I could also tell he was a full-on narcissist.
I never really gave him much thought, but then he ran for office.
It seemed like a prank. Even Stern called it a publicity stunt.
I’m not sure Trump ran to win the nomination, but win he did.
From there, Trump began to learn that the more racist and wild stuff that came out of his mouth, the more racists came out of the woodwork to support him.
There’s one thing about Trump that’s clear and that Democrats never figured out. If any person or group tells Donald he’s great, Donald will tell them they’re great back.
Donald loves people who love him. Otherwise, eff ’em.
When Trump was asked if he liked Putin, his first reaction was essentially, “I never met him, but he’s said good things about me, so he must be good.”
Trump has repeated that same sentiment about others over and over.
Trump’s undeniable racism, misogyny, bullying and nastiness would be enough for me to vote for Mickey Mouse before I voted for him. He’s been the most divisive president in my lifetime — no close second.
But I’m voting for Kamala because of Kamala.
In 2020, The New York Times described Harris as a “pragmatic moderate.”
She listens to and reaches a wide range of groups, garnering near 100% ratings from organizations such as the NAACP, Children’s Defense Fund, labor unions, retiree groups, and the National Association of Police Organizations.
Kamala believes in investing in early education and making college affordable for families earning less than $125,000 per year.
She understands the value of every American. And why diversity and inclusion make us better, not worse. She also understands that the system still isn’t fair for everyone.
Harris began her campaign by emphasizing her plan to end child poverty, reduce the costs of health and child care, and protect dignity in retirement.
She advocates for criminal justice reform and even voted for the First Step Act, legislation aimed at reducing recidivism rates among federal prisoners by expanding job training and other programs.
She’s supported expanding and ending loopholes on background checks for guns and requiring states to put domestic abuse offenders on a federal registry for background check purposes. All common-sense policies that the NRA opposes.
She wants to fix our border issues with compassion, not with vitriol. It’s a lie that she oversaw our border these past four years.
In fact, she supported the bill Trump asked Republicans to shut down that would have drastically reduced the flow of people across our borders. As a senator, Harris co-sponsored the Border and Port Security Act, that would have mandated U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to hire, train, and assign at least 500 officers annually until the number of needed positions the model identifies was filled.
The bill also required the CBP commissioner to determine potential equipment and infrastructure improvements that could be used for ports of entry. The Trump administration wouldn’t support the bill.
Neither party supports open borders, but there’s definitely a difference in how we view and treat human beings regardless of nationality.
But Harris is certainly not suggesting we round up and deport all workers who came here illegally. Those same hardworking people who pick our fruits and vegetables, contribute to society and have been here for years. A question Trump refused to answer at his debate against President Biden.
She’s consistently supported policies to protect our environment and tackle climate change.
She’s supported free trade.
Better investigation and prosecutorial tools to fight sex trafficking.
On foreign policy, Harris strikes a difficult balance between understanding that sometimes we need to use America’s power and support to protect America and its allies while also showing compassion for people who suffer from world conflicts.
Harris knows that one can support a safe and secure Israel and be anti-terror, while still caring about Palestinian freedom and their own statehood aspirations.
Above any specific policy, Kamala brings to our American discourse a sense of empathy, compassion and intelligence. She has that Obama-esque way of considering the facts, digesting multiple opinions and reaching well-thought-out conclusions.
She may not always get it right, but she knows how to listen to many voices to make her decisions carefully. Something we know her opponent is incapable of doing.
I know that with Kamala, we’ll get intelligent, thoughtful and tireless work to help people who are most in need. And we’ll get the good intentions our nation desperately needs right now.
This post originally appeared on Medium and is edited and republished with author's permission. Read more of Jeffrey Kass' work on Medium.