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J.D. FOSTER: The Harris Effect

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J.D. Foster J.D. Foster is the former chief economist at the Office of Management and Budget and former chief economist and senior vice president at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He now resides in relative freedom in the hills of Idaho.
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President Joe Biden looked a bit out of it giving his Oval Office address Wednesday night.

Still recovering from COVID and his shocking (for him) retreat from the campaign, Biden’s demeanor was understandable. American voters will soon sport a similar expression as they learn about the new San Francisco socialist option.

To be sure, Vice President Kamala Harris brings much to the table as a presidential candidate. For those who care about such things, a second shot at having the nation’s first female president has to inspire. That Hillary Clinton came up short is no harbinger for Harris, they hope.

She brings an energy to the campaign heretofore sorely lacking.

And Harris is a somewhat fresh face on the national stage. She made little impression as a senator except to move to the left of Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, according to GovTrack — until GovTrack scrubbed the rating a couple of days ago. She made little impression during her failed presidential run in 2020. As Biden’s understudy, Harris again made little impression beyond a healthy diet of word salad.

In short, few voters know much about her. And that is where the shock awaits. It is time to unveil the full Kamala.

Harris is making some curious decisions as she tries to define herself for the voters. She touts her record not as Biden’s vice president, nor as a senator, nor even as California’s attorney general. No, she reaches four steps down her resume to emphasize serving as San Francisco’s district attorney. The U.S. has over 30,000 DAs serving at present. DAs are important, but there is nothing special about the San Francisco DA.

Voters may find her boasting about being a far-left DA a headscratcher, but just wait until they learn that Harris really is a San Francisco socialist. Her extreme positions are well documented by her public remarks and nicely presented in a recent ad by Pennsylvania Republican senate candidate Dave McCormick.

Like your personal health insurance? Too bad. Harris will take it from you and force you into a government-run plan. The usual model offered, the British National Health System (NHS), was once the crown jewel of the British government. Today, it is a disaster presenting massive losses and long wait times for little things like cancer treatment. Or try Canada’s national health care system, which makes the NHS sparkle by comparison.

Maybe you live where it gets cold and have decided electric vehicles (EV) won’t be ready for prime time for a long time. You need a traditional car or truck. Too bad. Harris would force you to buy an EV. Know what your range would be driving a pickup truck in winter with the heater on and pulling a trailer? Not much. Liberal elites don’t care, but real people working for a living do.

Is energy security important to you? Too bad. She would ban fracking and any other investment related to the discovery or development of fossil fuels. Pennsylvanians, are you paying attention?

Higher taxes? You bet. It is the government’s money after all, and Harris considers herself benevolent to let you keep some.

Republicans certainly can’t crow about controlling federal spending, but the official motto of a Harris administration would be “the more, the merrier.”

What about regulations? The Biden-Harris bunch has proven frighteningly adept at pumping out new regulations. Using the lessons learned, a Harris administration would take it to the next level.

And the really funny thing? The Harris campaign just put up its first campaign ad. The key phrase: “We choose freedom.” Oh, not for you. For her and the administrative state. You just have to laugh. But when the voters get Harris’ full measure, they won’t be laughing. They’ll be doing a Biden.

J.D. Foster is the former chief economist at the Office of Management and Budget and former chief economist and senior vice president at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He now resides in relative freedom in the hills of Idaho.

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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