Elect Kamala Harris - The Transportist Editorial Board Endorsement
This newsletter makes endorsements.
Ok, it’s that time of the quadrennium that we must discuss American politics.
I voted abroad in the State of Minnesota for Vice President Kamala Harris to be President of the United States of America.
Why?
Foremost, she is not the other guy.
I support the Republic, and its continuation. I think that is more important than any particular policies. I believe if the Democrats win in 2024 and lose in 2028, they will turn over power peacefully, without encouraging riots or storming the Capitol. I do not believe the same of their opponents, who have demonstrated their true colors after the 2020 election, and which we knew beforehand if we were paying attention, and who have neither apologised, nor said it wouldn’t happen again.
I oppose rounding people up and mass deportations. Leave aside your view on the degree to which migration should be encouraged (I think yes) or discouraged, and whether such individuals should be given amnesty (I think they should), such a policy will inevitably deport American citizens who do not have their papers in order and on hand when storm troopers kick down the door. Oops they will say. Lives will be ruined in the meantime.
I support modern civilisation, the NATO alliance and its continuation, and generally protecting Civilization from the Barbarians. I think keeping Ukraine free from Russian (or North Korean) occupation is important, and supporting the 1994 commitments (Budapest Memorandum) we made when denuclearising Ukraine (a strategic error on Ukraine’s part, obviously) is keeping our word. I don’t believe a President of the United States should blame victims for their invasion. Fighting the battle ‘there’ keeps us from having to fight other battles elsewhere, ultimately ‘here’. This is more likely to happen with someone who is not beholden to Russian oligarchs. I understand game theory, and the need to get NATO allies to contribute more to the common defence, and threatening cuts might induce that. However, I don’t believe that is the game being played, rather it is isolationism and kowtowing to foreign strongmen, which worked badly during World War II.
I oppose trade wars and think tariffs are generally bad policy. I understand game theory, and the need to threaten tariffs to ensure free trade. I also understand the need for distributed production capacity for most goods globally to reduce international dependencies and to increase robustness and resilience to possible failures (global pandemic, war, etc.). However, there are gains from trade, and these should be exploited. The US is an exporter, and moving first on tariffs will guarantee responses and slow down the economy, just as happened in the 1920s.
I think over the long run government budgets should be more or less balanced, and history suggests that is unlikely to happen with a political party that likes cutting taxes without cutting spending. Evidence shows the last Democratic administrations were far more in balance than Republicans.
I don’t believe governments should know the health or medical status of its residents unless it is volunteered by the individual involved. This is a fundamental element to a right to privacy.
Her main opponent is unfit to be President.
I could keep going, if you are unconvinced you don’t want to be convinced.
As the record will show, I supported Barack Obama twice. I did not like either major party candidate in 2016, and voted for Biden with reluctance in 2020. I have never voted Republican for President, and will continue to not do so.1
In 1980, I campaigned for Independent Candidate John Anderson, and helped him get on the Maryland ballot, but was too young to vote. I also managed his campaign in our Middle School mock election, where we finished a close second to Jimmy Carter (Maryland was one of the states Carter carried in 1980).