By Richard Mason
Being a swing-state resident means you must endure the experience of being the center of presidential elections. This current cycle feels worse when it comes to the political ads that feel inescapable. They’re present on television channels, sports broadcasts, ad-supported streaming, and YouTube. Pulling this off isn’t cheap: a little over $1 billion has been spent between July 22 and Oct. 8 on presidential race ads in swing states. Unless you have that cool uncle who shared his HBO Max password with you, every viewing experience will be interrupted by highly negative commercials.
Trump’s 2024 campaign has focused their TV ads on social issues like immigration, security, and transgender policies. All these ads highlight the topics as negatives of Kamala Harris’ record. With the exception of no taxes on tips, there are few policies championed by Trump. That’s not to say Harris has offered a five-year plan, but at least she has a platform.
Trump’s strategy has focused on the most polarizing issues. The Harris campaign has focused on abortion rights, which is also a contested topic. The distinction I’d make between the two campaign’s strategies is that Harris’ is not nearly as over the top as Trump’s. In an Economist article from September, it’s summarized that Trump’s campaign went more negative as Kamala’s numbers surpassed his own. In the same article there is a featured Trump supporter who says that the former president needs to “stick to the policy more than the name calling.”
I often question what came first, the angry voter or the angry politician? Do voters really want such inflammatory rhetoric? While the style of the message is likely no one’s favorite, Trump is still feeding his base what they want. Pew Research reported that a majority of polled Trump supporters are in favor of mass deportation for people who have entered the country without legal permission. The hostile political climate is likely going nowhere anytime soon. But I think a good start is to stop calling people horrible for differing views and to not center an entire political campaign on this.
