We’ve been told, over and over and over again, that Kamala Harris is the candidate of “joy.” Tim Walz, upon accepting his vice presidential nomination, thanked her for “bringing back the joy.” Rolling Stone gushed that Harris’ “new politics of joy is the best way to fight fascism.” The New York Times headlined, “Harris used to worry about laughing. Now joy is fueling her campaign.”

Now, for most Americans, this simply is not a time of joy.

Not a single poll shows more than 35% believing that the country is moving in the right direction. Two thirds of Americans think America is on the wrong track. Meanwhile, the supposed candidate of joy has the approval of approximately 46% of Americans; almost 50% are unfavorable on her. Three years of extraordinary inflation means that everyday items now cost at least 20% more than they did in 2021. Uncertainty and chaos span the globe, from Ukraine to Taiwan to the Middle East. Americans no longer know whether they can safely say that a man is different than a woman, while simultaneously being informed that it is deeply important that they elect a woman president.

But … joy.

It’s a brilliant marketing gimmick, to be sure. Kamala Harris’ career has been filled with three marked characteristics: blatant and manipulative calculation; heavy-handed government interventionism; and awkward, off-putting mannerisms ranging from word salad to laughter. But “joy” can be used as a shield against all these charges. She’s not manipulative — she’s genuine! She’s not tyrannical — she’s caring! She’s not awkward and phony — she’s joyous! That laughter you hear isn’t the strange cackling of a machine politician caught in a lie. It’s a sheer outburst of happiness springing directly from the heart of a woman who is dancing on the inside. She is youth, she is joy, she is a little bird that has broken out of the egg!

Joy is also a sword to be used against opponents. Donald Trump, we are told, is a candidate of darkness and revenge. JD Vance, his vice presidential candidate, is “weird” and authoritarian. Why can’t they feel the joy?

In fact, why don’t you feel the joy? Is something wrong with you? Why can’t you bob your head to Beyonce’s “Freedom” while Kamala dances and Tim Walz pastes on a smile so broad it would turn Jack Nicholson’s Joker green with envy? Do you hate joy?

All of this is, to put it mildly, slightly sinister.

It is one thing to demand that Americans vote for a candidate for the presidency on the basis of her policies, or even on the basis of her opponent’s supposed unworthiness. It is another to demand that we feel the joy. It reeks of authoritarians of the past, all of whom suggested that the failures of their policies were not failures of leadership, but failure of the people to change their hearts of stone for hearts of flesh. It is not a coincidence that Joseph Stalin’s propaganda posters routinely featured small children gazing adoringly up at him, with the slogan emblazoned, “We Are Warmed By Stalin’s Affection!” Or that Mao’s posters similarly featured celebratory children, with the words, “Mao’s Words Bring Joy!” Or that Hitler offered free vacations to members of the German Labour Front with the slogan, “Strength Through Joy!” (One legacy of “Strength Through Joy” was the German “People’s Car,” later to be known as the Volkswagen Beetle.)

Authoritarians demand emotional fealty, not merely political fealty.

This doesn’t mean that Kamala Harris is a Stalinist, Maoist or Nazi (although members of the radical Democratic Party base seem to be warm toward aspects of all three regimes). It does mean that authoritarianism papers over its totalitarian policies with the soothing platitudes of paternalism and maternalism, and demands that you sacrifice the true joys in life — family, church, community — in favor of a Big Brother. Or, in the case of Kamala Harris, a Big Mother.

Just feel the joy. And stop asking questions.

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