O P I N I O N
Welcome to Decoding the Vibe where I tell it like it really is as the first-in-the-nation primary parade of candidates comes to New Hampshire. Join me behind the scenes where you might just find out what the candidate is really like. – Susan Dromey Heeter
Somersworth, NH – To be in a high school gym on a Sunday afternoon in July is not something I do often – nor am I usually surrounded by more than 600 people.
The vibe, mercifully in an air-conditioned space, for U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris felt vibrant, felt young, felt interested, felt colorful. I recognized quite a few people I know and felt very much the same vibe I’ve felt at Buttigieg, at Warren, at Booker: Smart, hipster, educated.
The vibe reminded me of college tours – where you see the same people on the circuit, pretty much every institution is selling the same, “We are the best and our alumni go on to do fabulous things.”
Harris would have a really strong law program and the tour guide would cite specifics and data to reinforce their status as number one. The library would be filled with vast collections of books, of data, of encouragement to prospective candidates. Apply! You’ll get in! We’ll all be roomies and it’ll be fabulous!
Kamala is a dynamo. She’s highly intelligent. She invited high-end contenders and the crowd was smart, vibrant, eclectic. She was introduced by Somersworth activist and owner of Teatotaller Cafe in Somersworth, Emmett Soldati. The Teatotaller is a cafe with “Deets” and “Haps” on its website. It took me a bit to realize that “Deets” meant “details,” “Haps” are “happenings.” Both Soldati and the cafe are very hip, very progressive and very inclusive.
And Kamala Harris is hip, progressive and inclusive. She provided solid data around issues including homelessness, teacher salaries, student debt. As a university, her financial aid office would be generous and stellar. She promised, “In the America we believe in, you’ll only have to work one job to put a roof over your head and food on the table.”
Harris invited a crowd wearing Birkenstocks, feminist T-shirts, flip-flops. Gabe Wilde of Biddeford sported a “Make America Gay Again” baseball cap and wanted to ask Harris if she would work to make community college free for everybody – including new immigrants to America. Wilde works in admissions at a community college in Maine and supports the need for immigrants to simply get some additional education to make it here in the U.S.
And just as students often take a myriad of college tours, many in the crowd were comparing Harris to Buttigieg, to Booker, to Warren.
Harris did mention other campuses, specifically Trump U, and referenced the distractions by Tweets, the betrayal and used her legal background to provide a case for “prosecuting the case against four more years of Trump.”
The Harris vibe felt strong, felt vibrant felt powerful. Alas, like many a high school senior, the similarities to other choices felt very close – even the backdrop of her speech with people from the crowd felt very Mayor Pete – much the same way those New England colleges can all meld into one another – was it Emerson where they have a yoga bar? Did Stonehill offer singles freshman year? Was it Salve Regina where there is unlimited coffee?
So, dear Decoders, thanks for reading my vibe. Kamala Harris University has a wonderful law program, a stellar financial aid district, and some great Deets and Haps. I’d encourage you to go on the tour.
Susan Dromey Heeter is a writer from Dover who recently let her hair go au natural white. Writing has been her passion since her English majoring days at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. Dromey Heeter has lived in The Netherlands, Alaska and currently basks in all things New England, including the frigid winters. An avid swimmer, Dromey Heeter’s great passion is to bring back body surfing as most children have no idea how to ride waves without ridiculous boogie boards.
