President Michelle Obama: File this under “things that should keep you awake at night.”
We’ve all seen President Joe Biden’s ongoing mental and physical decline. My RedState colleague Jeff Charles just gave us some food for thought about Kamala Harris rising to the top spot. Sooner or later, one suspects, someone is going to have to bell the cat, pull a Barry Goldwater, walk in, and tell old Joe, “Enough is enough. It’s time for you to pack it in.”
But the American Spectator’s Pat Nolan thinks that there may be an alternative to Kamala Harris.
Michelle Obama. Yes, really. Here’s how Mr. Nolan thinks this could happen.
The Democratic establishment is laying the groundwork to dump Joe Biden. When the New York Times, Washington Post, Newsweek, Axios, and the Atlantic desert a liberal president, you know the knives are out. Which raises two questions: when will they stick the shiv into Biden? And how do they plan to deal with the “Kamala problem”?
To all but her most ardent fans, it is obvious that having Kamala on the 2024 ticket would be a disaster for the Democrats. Her 2020 campaign collapsed before a single vote was cast. Biden made her his running mate, not because she was a good candidate, but solely because he had backed himself into a corner when he promised he would choose a black woman as his running mate.
In other words, as I think we all know, Kamala Harris was a diversity hire of the first water. But she’s also in the #2 chair already. How, presuming the Democrats want to run someone else, do they deal with this?
The most vexing dilemma facing the Democrats is how to justify sidelining Harris who would make history as the first black woman president. Political insiders know that there is zero possibility that it could happen. However, many black voters are holding on to the hope that it might happen. Given the dependence of the Democrats on overwhelming support from blacks, this would be very tricky. Sidelining Kamala could lead to black voters sitting out the next presidential election. That would doom the ticket.
However, there is one path the Democrats could take which would immediately dispel any notion of betrayal. If Michelle Obama announced she is running for president, any resentment among black voters about Harris’ treatment would evaporate. While some may think this is farfetched, a Michelle Obama candidacy makes sense for many reasons. Michelle is very popular with the Democrats’ base and is far more popular than Kamala. Michelle has recently raised her profile, speaking out on issues important to the Dems’ base. This is a striking shift from the low-profile Michelle has kept since she and Barack left the White House.
Here’s why this isn’t a likely scenario.
First: Look at the lifestyle the Obamas have now, from their multiple waterfront mansions to their Greek vacations with Tom Hanks. They have to do very little to ensure their continued lifestyle of the rich and famous, and it’s difficult to believe they’d give up the fast and easy road to riches available to ex-politicians. And things like speaking fees may be a little shady, but they are technically legal.
Second: Michelle Obama has never faced serious opposition for anything in her adult life. Not in her patronage job as “Vice President for Community and External Affairs” (whatever that is) at the University of Chicago Hospitals, to her tenure as First Lady, to… whatever it is she does now. Even if the Democrats ran a no-opposition coronation for her through their primary process, at some point she would have to stand up and debate someone like Donald Trump or Ron DeSantis, and she is in no way prepared or capable of taking that on.
Third and finally: She’s not remotely qualified, and even the Democrats have to know this. The only thing she brings to the table is a name that is hers by marriage, a Brobdingnagian sense of entitlement, and the approved skin color and plumbing to replace Kamala Harris.
That’s not to say that the Democrats might not attempt this anyway if they can convince Mrs. Obama to go along with it. Michelle Obama may be a slightly darker Hillary Clinton, but if one would play devil’s advocate for a moment, one need but point out how narrow was Donald Trump’s 2016 victory over the Dowager Empress of Chappaqua – a few thousand votes in a few key states would have yielded very different results. And it’s true, Michelle Obama would appeal to a lot of voters who are nostalgic for the Obama Presidency, hate the GOP, and want to check off one more “historic first.”
It’s a possibility the Republicans would have to take seriously, were it to happen. But it seems unlikely. The Obamas are now far too entrenched in their jet-setting, massive-carbon-footprint lifestyle to want to dive back into the swamp.
Then again, predictions are notoriously hard to make — especially when they’re about the future.