The National Review's Jim Geraghty has written a lengthy column warning conservatives against writing off Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.
While allowing that sometimes Harris "serves up some stinkers" when she's "speaking off the cuff," he adds that it would be a mistake for conservatives to dismiss her as a lightweight.
"If Kamala Harris is as stupid as her critics claim, why does she have the Democratic presidential nomination and a roughly 50–50 shot of being the first female president in U.S. history?" he writes. "Do you know how many ruthlessly ambitious Democratic men and women have desperately yearned to get where she is? How many smart, tough, shrewd, often underhanded and cold-blooded pols have tried to claw their way up the greasy pole and fallen short? And somehow this supposed dunce managed to do it?"
Geraghty then traces Harris' career, which got a significant early boost thanks in part to her personal relationship with former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown.
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However, Harris continued to rise after ending her relationship with Brown, and Geraghty believes that shows an instinct for getting other power brokers to invest in her success in Democratic politics.
"Every ambitious Democrat in San Francisco, past and present, wants the deep pockets of the movers and shakers in their corner," he observes. "Many try; Harris succeeded in closing the sale."
He then zooms forward to the present, when Harris managed to seize control of the Democratic Party shortly after President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 race and in short time has built a formidable campaign operation that has raised over $1 billion.
"If Kamala Harris is such a hapless dunce, how does she keep getting so many other people to work around the clock to elect her?" he asks.