Were you the trouble-child under watchful eyes (or chappals if you are blessed by Asian gods) of a rather unyielding set of parents? Well, go and tell your mum that this summer, her insults are the testaments of your lime-green “it”ness. And if her endearing naivete dare evoke the Gen-Zs; tell her that her favourite baby boomer Democrat is in agreement with you. Kamala is brat — Oh, Charli XCX what have you done.
The pop culture gods have granted Kamala Harris her PR wish. Her online campaign has undergone a brat-coded makeover — a "Kamala HQ" rebrand on X and a trademark lime green from the “Brat” album cover . This PR stunt came almost immediately post Biden’s stepping aside from the elections with a nod to his VP and Charli tweeting "kamala IS brat," sending social media into a frenzy with nearly nine million views. Clearly, Harris seems ready to “Brat”-tle her way to the White House with the elections closing in on the less than 3 months mark.
It’s not just Harris though, this presidential election seems to be a constant sprint race of which online token moments will surpass actual mega-moments in politics. Lest we forget that there’s more to the Harris news feed than online gab-seshes of wine moms, neo-libs and never-Trumpers under the united banner of “brat”politics — Kamala Harris actually became the first Democratic nominee in recent times not to go through a primary process!
Same goes for Trump – almost taken out by a sniper but what sticks are the unbelievably cool hand-in-air AP News pictures and Van Gogh-Trump meme edits.
Still not convinced? There’s more.
Enter Tim “these guys are just weird” Walz, the vice-presidential candidate of the Democrats. GQ is of the (quirkily correct) opinion that choosing Walz was quite a clever pick — and that’s not just because he’s an older white guy (a demography which despite their questionable track record, still hold plenty of sway over the average white American), but also for his Midwestern charm. Online, Walz is “the Midwestern Prince” (About a 97% sure that this 60 year old is hardly a Chappell Roan stan ). Add to this his style – edging between dadcore and gorpcore — and there’s that nostalgic touch of down-to-earth folksiness to the Democrat campaign.
But let’s hold our…couches. There’s also the likes of JD Vance and his promiscuous endeavors with living room furniture. For a full week, my X feed was filled with an unassuming “I don’t follow politics” populace alarmingly excited about the bedroom whimsies of this Republican vice-presidential nominee. Did Vance have sex with a couch? Possibly not. Does he look like one? I’m afraid so – and that’s all that matters.
This is the part where I quote Sam Wolfson from his Guardian article — “This election is not being fought on proposed policies or past accomplishments. It’s being fought on vibes”. Noone actually knows what these candidates are planning to do once they come into power. Trump is gallivanting with his “immigration bad” schtick. What’s he going to do? Build a wall apparently. Not just Trump though, the Democrats are all for reproductive rights, voting rights and gun-law reforms this time — but what’s really transpiring in their policy agenda?
Between you and me, the average US voter should worry a little more about abortion rights, a heat wave that is killing people, off the charts inflation, a supreme court that’s by the day embracing a far-right, anti-democratic agenda along with a couple other million issues. But this election of vibes, as Wolfson writes, has come with a goal “to determine not who the candidates are but who you feel like they could be if they weren’t politicians”.
Apologies KHives, but your K is hardly a brat. For my less chronically online readers — a brat girl, in the words of Charli XCX herself, is a “girl who is a bit messy and loves to party and maybe says dumb things sometimes,”. To put it simply, “it” girls on nicotine and cocaine.
Kamala isn’t brat. Except maybe….she is. Remember that Covid speech? — “It is time for us to do what we have been doing. And that time is every day.”
Word, Kamala.
And no less of a perfect time to mention one of my favourite moments in brain-rot soliloquy literature – the Harris “passage of time” speech.
This caliber of writing is perhaps best achievable with copious amounts of brat girl partying.
This is what the post 2016 Trump phenomenon of politics has lured us to. Where Harris is brat vibes, Trump is cool vibes, Walz is dad vibes, Vance… is weird vibes. A ear and a half worth of gratitude to Donald Trump for making sure that the entire process of presidential elections becomes an unfunny roast leading to bizarre headlines and a pin-cushion landing on the Jimmy Kimmel show.
But up until 5th of November though, there’s still some room left for wishful thinking. Perhaps the US votes against war crimes, against racists, against patriarchs, against fascists and against the divisive politics of hate – no matter how shrouded it is in bubbles of online quirks.
Lastly Kamala, I’ll yield. To threaten protestors with a Trump presidency if they continued to speak out against genocide is quite the mom-definition bratty of you.
America, please do better. Let this be your it girl summer.
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