“Attack Joe Biden 3-5 times” is rather obvious. But two other pieces of advice in the leaked memos about what Florida Governor and contender for the Republican presidential nomination (as reported by The New York Times), Ron DeSantis, should do in the upcoming debate between the nominees deserve attention.
First, he has reportedly been advised to “defend Donald Trump”, confirming that the former US president continues to be the central pole of Republican politics. Second, he was told to “hammer Vivek Ramaswamy”, indicating that the Indian-origin candidate is becoming a significant player. His rise to prominence indicates that despite the post-Trump polarisation of the American polity, there remain undercurrents and complexities — even within the Republican Party — that may yet find expression.
Even if he is just testing the waters for another shot at the White House in the future, Ramaswamy has made quite an impact. First, his immense personal wealth — from a career as an investment banker and the biotech firm he founded — means that he can (and largely is) finance his campaign.
Second, as a young conservative – Ramaswamy is 38 — he has articulated with clarity and a seriousness missing in Trump’s views on the major fault lines in American politics. For example, while Ramaswamy is “pro-life”, he has come out against a federal abortion ban. In a sense, Ramaswamy could perhaps mark the beginning of the post-Trump conservative. He is anti-war and, in what appears ironic at first glance, anti-immigrant: If elected, he has said that he will put an end to the war in Ukraine and deploy US resources on the southern border (with Mexico). The core of Ramaswamy’s politics appears to be “anti-wokeism”, which seems to be the plank on which many Republicans hope to sway middle-of-the-road voters. There is a millennial tone with which Ramaswamy attacks bogeys like minors undergoing gender reassessment surgery.
While appealing to the conservative Republican base, Ramaswamy also appears to have the ability to reach across the aisle. There have, of course, been other Indian-origin Republicans who have made a mark — Bobby Jindal and Nikki Haley, for example. Just as many South Asians in Britain are moving away from Labour, there appears to be less certainty about the community being a captive vote for Democrats. Ramaswamy is positioning himself as someone with a consistent and “independent” agenda that will allow him to work with both sides. And his immigrant origins — despite his positions — make it difficult for liberals to easily label him a bigot — as is the case with Trump. The question, however, is whether the Republican party and Ramaswamy can straddle political contradictions the way Rishi Sunak has in the UK: Is there room for a pro-market, anti-climate change, anti-migrant, anti-woke, non-Christian, Brown US President?
