🧵Just toucheddown in Chicago for the DNC and wanted to share some thoughts on why Indian Americans are so fired up about VP @KamalaHarris.

Tl;dr: we finally have a POTUS candidate that reflects our community’s values. Kamala Harris’s nomination as the Democratic candidate for the 2024 presidential election marks a historic moment, not just for her but for the Indian American community she represents.

So just to be clear..

Twitter went down on the day of Joe Biden’s 2024 campaign launch.

Twitter throttled @KamalaHQ the day it launched.

Twitter has now suspended the @dudes4harris account tonight — the night they raised $4 million on a super viral mega-zoom.



Seeing some say the actual account is @/ dudesforharris, but some of the speakers have been tagging the other account.

https://twitter.com/garypeters/status/1818100304140763158

“The base of the Democratic Party doesn’t trust the broader Biden coalition to support Harris should she become the nominee.”

My latest for @HuffPost on what so many are missing about this moment — that the Democratic Party base understands.huffpost.com/entry/why-kama… To some, it might seem like the moment Vice President Kamala Harris’ most fervent supporters have long hoped for. huffpost.com/entry/why-kama…

I think it’s incredibly unfair the way people who have pointed out clear issues in media or re: Biden coverage have been smeared.

Just such a bad faith approach. The same journalists who spent years trying to understand MAGA 🙄 just don’t have the same respect for moderate Dems. Not everyone who criticizes the press is “MAGA” and to call those concerned about the imbalanced coverage “Blue MAGA” for pointing that out is a cynical effort to shut down the conversation.

🧵Why some of Kamala Harris’s Biggest Fans aren’t joining Calls for her to Replace Biden🧵

(My take on what the Democratic base understands that the broader Biden coalition doesn’t.) To some, it might seem like the moment Vice President Kamala Harris’s most fervent supporters have long hoped for;

NEW: @washingtonpost has now corrected their FALSE reporting that @tedlieu called on Biden to step down earlier today.

(Media has been pretty condescending in response to fair criticism this week but they have now repeatedly rushed to confirm their biases & reported false info.)

https://twitter.com/tedlieu/status/1810088763466678769

Not at all fair to @tedlieu as a fraction will see the correction vs. who saw the viral original story…and now he has to try to explain himself to upset supporters

Media just made up these stories over past few days:

LIE 1—Biden scheduled trip to discuss future w/ family (it was pre-planned)

LIE 2—DNC moved nomination in response to debate (was planned since May due to Ohio issue)

LIE 3—Biden didn’t speak to any Govs post-debate (he did) What’s more offensive is if you point this out they’ll compare you to MAGA. Just absolutely wild.

🧵U.S. Higher Ed is in Turmoil — It’s a Threat to America’s Global Future 🧵

For the last century, America's higher education system, especially prestigious institutions like the Ivy League, have been one of our most significant global exports. Now, from campus protests, to high-profile resignations from University Presidents, a global pandemic, diminishing returns to education, and a Supreme Court ruling that supercharged debates over merit — American higher education is in crisis.

RFK Jr.’s running mate Nicole Shanahan 1) had an affair with far right wing billionaire Elon Musk that ended her marriage and 2) paid millions for that RFK Jr. Super Bowl ad that offended his family members.

She has zero qualifications to be a heartbeat away from the presidency. Fair! The fact is he picked her because he’s is rich and can dump money into his spoiler bid targeting ballot access in key swing states.

https://twitter.com/drummike2012/status/1772652436370477474

Just to be clear…still no lawsuit filed by @BillAckman. Will media let him off the hook after giving him the headlines he wanted? Or will they actually follow-up and expose him as the empty bully he is?

His wife was not defamed and everything he said was pure bluster. Let’s review! The story about @NeriOxman being a plagiarist came out the first week of the year.

Bill Ackman said he would sue for defamation almost immediately after. He got headlines saying just that along with coverage of his deranged screeds on the topic.

🧵Biden Supporters Aren’t in Denial, Everyone Else Is
 
There’s a persistent narrative among beltway pundits and even some well-meaning armchair campaigners that pro-Biden Democrats like me are “in denial” about President Joe Biden’s advanced age. Ironically, what has become clear as we are dragged through yet another “but Biden’s age” newscycle is that we are perhaps the only ones engaging rationally on the issue. Joe Biden is old; You won’t hear me or other pro-Biden Democratic operatives argue otherwise.

Simple. If you’re a Democrat, do me a favor…share this screenshot and tag journalists who may themselves be struggling with their memories…because many seem to be forgetting this.

Basically a Republican special counsel decided he was pissed Biden played the “don’t recall” card that every defendant/subject of an investigation on the planet uses and decided to package that up as an attack on Biden’s memory.

Ivanka couldn’t recall a single thing ever. White House calls this out…

https://twitter.com/edokeefe/status/1755699233309495575

I got a lot of comments on this CNN hit I shared where I spoke about Nikki Haley not going by her birth first name and I want to address it.

🧵 No, Nikki Haley does not go by the first name on her birth certificate. Yes, it’s relevant to her candidacy.
  As you now probably know, the former South Carolina Governor and current 2024 Republican contender goes by her middle name “Nikki” instead of her birth name, “Nimarata.”

🧵On Birtherism, Haley Gets Burned by Flame she Stoked
 
In a rather predictable twist of political fate, Nikki Haley finds herself on the receiving end of the same divisive tactics she once sidestepped or enabled. As the former South Carolina Governor climbs in the polls, her former boss Donald Trump is now claiming Haley is ineligible for office, challenging the status of her citizenship.

[Thread 🧵] As a 2022 graduate of Harvard Law School and the Harvard Kennedy School, it is clear to me Harvard has a double standard when it comes disgraced attorney — Harvard Law Professor emeritus — Alan Dershowitz.

I believe Harvard must review Dershowitz’s emeritus status. Last week, after a rightwing pressure campaign, Harvard President Claudine Gay resigned over
allegations of plagiarism and an inadequate response to antisemitism. One notable rightwing
voice — and member of the Harvard community — was particularly insistent Gay should resign.

Starting the year off with a piece in @BostonGlobe arguing that Biden is far and away Democrats’ best candidate for 2024.

“Memories can be short, but voters would be wise to consider how far President Biden has brought the country in just three years.” bostonglobe.com/2024/01/01/opi… Here’s the full text:

As the 2024 presidential election approaches, the Democratic Party faces a consequential decision: Should President Biden run for reelection?

bostonglobe.com/2024/01/01/opi…

My new piece on the hypocrisy of Bill Ackman, Elon Musk, Bari Weiss and other self-anointed “free speech” warriors.

“It’s worth noting the sudden acknowledgement from conservatives that institutions of higher learning should not embrace all speech.” themessenger.com/opinion/penn-l… Full text:

News that University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill would resign following concerning responses at a congressional hearing about antisemitism on college campuses was met with praise from across the political spectrum.

Pretty disgusting stuff from @FareedZakaria…much of which misinterprets data or plainly spews bigoted rightwing talking points.

https://twitter.com/fareedzakaria/status/1733927077085143263

Without focus on DEI would Zakaria gotten into Harvard and Yale 3 decades ago? 🤔 When you start to sound like Vivek…just stop. A good operating principle.

Not voting for Biden or staying home because you don’t approve of the U.S. response to the Israel-Hamas war just shows you are putting your own moral superiority over the human rights of the rest of us. It’s selfish. He is doing no such thing and has helped get aid to Gaza and hostages released, but regardless responding to something you think is bad by taking actions that guarantee more bad things happen to other marginalized folks….is an absurd position.

https://twitter.com/flowfaygo/status/1728801664373502289

Proud of this one. I wrote about my grandparents, The Golden Bachelor, and Joe Biden turning 81.

Please read/share and let me know what you think!

“Old age no longer means what it used to — and Democrats should make that case this cycle.”

themessenger.com/opinion/presid… Here’s the full text:

At age 95, my grandmother still wakes up early every morning to go to the office. Her office is in the basement, equipped with a sewing machine and an oversized, slightly outdated, iMac.

themessenger.com/opinion/presid…