Harris' 2024 message: We're the party of "freedom"
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Vice President Kamala Harris signaled in her first campaign ad Thursday that she's leaning into a message of "freedom" — a word long associated with Republican campaigns but more recently seized by Democrats.
Why it matters: Everyone loves "freedom." But in the 2024 cycle, the definition depends on your politics.
What she's saying: "We choose freedom. The freedom not just to get by, but to get ahead. The freedom to be safe from gun violence. The freedom to make decisions about your own body," Harris says in the video, backed by Beyonce's 2016 single, also called "Freedom."
Flashback: Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a potential Harris running mate, had a viral moment in 2022 in which he declared that "real freedom" meant allowing women to decide what to do with their bodies and investing in underfunded schools and communities.
- President Biden launched his own campaign with an ad that included images of the Jan. 6 riot and declared, "the question we're facing is whether in the years ahead we have more freedom." Another Biden ad asked: "If Donald Trump gets back in power, what freedom will you lose next?"
- Biden's entire campaign was largely focused around the idea that Trump is a threat to democracy and, by extension, freedom.
Between the lines: "The 'freedom' message is one that many Dems have argued works better than calls to 'protect democracy,'" notes Amy Walter, editor-in-chief of the Cook Political Report.
Zoom in: For Harris, the "freedom" message isn't just about Trump and democracy. It also signals how central the pro-choice movement's messaging will be to her campaign, notes Axios' Andrew Solender.
- Since the Supreme Court's 2022 Dobbs decision, abortion rights groups have embraced "freedom" instead of "choice," Axios' Natalie Daher reports.
- For example, the group NARAL Pro-Choice America re-branded as Reproductive Freedom for All.
The other side: "Freedom" has continued to feature prominently in GOP rhetoric, whether endorsing gun rights, defending religious liberty or opposing COVID-19 lockdowns.
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