Voters Like Harris’s Message About ‘Free’ Stuff; Here’s How to Counter It

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Kamala Harris is making one thing clear: she believes an economically anxious electorate will respond well to promises of new cash for homeowners and parents, lower food prices and student loan forgiveness.

It’s a clever political play, with economic well-being continuing to rank as voters’ most important issue amid indicators of a shaky economy. While economists slammed parts of her plan as unaffordable and reminiscent of U.S.S.R.-style communism, voters who say the country is worse off than it was in 2020 may be desperate enough to take Harris at her word.

It’s hard to develop political messaging that counters “we will give you free stuff.” However, Republicans have powerful tools at their disposal to counter her message: Economic reality, stories of tremendous suffering under price controls, and the anchor of incumbency that will ultimately make it hard for Harris to distance herself entirely from the current economic anxiety.

The final tool in the messaging toolbox is a reminder that Harris is no political newcomer or an insurgent candidate who lacks governmental power. By virtue of her role as vice president, she bears some responsibility for Americans’ suffering.

Donald Trump may lack message discipline, but he understands what he needs to do on some level. Within days of Harris’s proposals going public, he harkened back to the miserable era of Soviet-era Russia with a new “Comrade Kamala” nickname. He has further compared her with socialist dictators like Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, whose years of price controls and other socialist policies have led to extreme hunger, an exodus of more than seven million people, and more than a decade of shortages of items like milk, coffee, and toilet paper. […]

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