How Harris can change the narrative to beat Trump

Rarely is an American political party presented with the opportunity for a course correction of this magnitude so late in the election cycle. Democrats showed how American political parties can be resilient and speedy when they need to be, also demonstrating that government can likely do the same when called upon to do so.

Vice President Kamala Harris, now the likely Democratic nominee for president, can flip the script on her MAGA rivals by defending the role of government to make lives better in America while offering a positive vision for the country that directly rebuts Donald Trump’s vision of a weak country in decline whose government is incapable of solving problems that people care the most about.

Harris and her campaign can rewrite the narrative behind this election. Joe Biden’s message of telling Americans that the economy is fantastic even though they could not see or feel its benefits wasn’t working. Harris can win this election by making this issue about the future and not the past; about hope rather than the fear Trump is counting on.

Simply put, don’t run on Joe Biden’s record. There is no need to openly reject any of his achievements or feel the need to take the blame for his failures. Joe has passed the torch, and it is her chance to make this her campaign. I would focus on three things that directly impact every American family in a real and profound way:

First, concentrate on paid family leave for new mothers and fathers and the cost of child care. According to the New York Times, as of 2021, the United States is one of just six nations that do not offer a national paid family leave while 186 others do. Beyond this, a Care.com study found in 2023 that the cost of daycare—depending on where one lives—averages $15,000 per year with in-home nanny care averaging nearly $40,000 annually. If we want to see where Americans are forced to spend down their savings, look no further.

Second, the growing retirement crisis is a serious threat to the safety and well-being of our country. An April AARP study found that one in four adults age 50 and up have no retirement savings while “one-quarter of U.S. adults age 50 and older who are not yet retired say they expect to never retire and 70% are concerned about prices rising faster than their income.” The Harris campaign can do the tough but necessary work of educating the American public about why this crisis is occurring, what it means for our families and loved ones directly, and how her policies can help.

Finally, make the nation’s mental health crisis, particularly among our kids, a focal point in the way that an empathetic person like Harris can do. This is perhaps the most worrisome and vexing domestic challenge we face, yet very few politicians talk about it in a way that communicates its significance in the lives of American families. The statistics regarding the rapid rise in rates of suicide, depression, anxiety and other forms of self-harm among young people are alarming, staggering and in need of a Marshall Plan-sized effort to address it.

These are not intangible problems, nor are they contrived ones like Donald Trump’s obsession with “migrant crime” or his false assertions about the Biden administration increasing taxes by four times and how he allegedly beat ISIS in 30 days. This trio of issues directly impact all of us, our families, people we know, people we love and people we can reach out and touch each day.

This is time for a “People First” campaign that directly contradicts the false, negative campaign of the Republican nominee by shifting the narrative. Instead of building up a cadre of super villains as Trump has done with migrants, government civil servants, intricate trade deals and others, Vice President Harris can refocus the campaign on one thing: us. Harris doesn’t need to make Trump the focal point of her campaign. Trust me, he is going to do a good job of that for her with his penchant for gaffes, inability to control his rage and his own challenges with mental acuity.

Vice President Harris can win this election with a reset that changes the narrative to focus on what all people—not just a small segment of the electorate—fret about each day: The cost of child care and paid family leave, the very real retirement crisis and the mental health crisis we collectively face.

The American people desperately want a candidate to talk to them in a serious way about the things that keep them up at night. Harris has a chance to do that while showing how government can be used as a force for good and for problem-solving in the Democratic tradition linked closely to the likes of FDR himself. America is ready for this kind of campaign. Now let’s see if Harris can deliver it.

Nathan R. Shrader, Ph.D., serves as associate professor of politics and co-director of the Center for Civic Engagement at New England College. Reach him at nshrader@nec.edu. The opinions expressed here are his own.