Trump calls her "Laffin Kamala" - Kamala Harris - the rhetoric of joy from a tough lawyer

FOCUS online Trump calls her "Laffin Kamala" - Kamala Harris - the rhetoric of joy from a tough lawyer Michael Ehlers • 53 million • 4 minutes reading time Kamala Harris laughs during a campaign speech in Indianapolis Although Kamala Harris has yet to be confirmed as Donald Trump's challenger, he has already targeted her as his most dangerous opponent. This is also reflected in the fact that he has given her one of his infamous nicknames. After his hits "Crooked Hillary" and "Sleepy Joe Biden", the ex-president is now targeting "Laffin Kamala" - laughing Kamala. The "Trump baptism" shows, on the one hand, how seriously he takes the supposed challenger and, on the other hand, how old-fashioned the 78-year-old ex-president comes across in the face of a politician of a new generation. Especially in comparison with the fine blade that Harris wields, Trump's always derogatory sledgehammer "humor" just seems embarrassing and flat. The situation is reminiscent of the cliché of a family celebration: Grandpa told a joke with the N-word and everyone was embarrassed. In Harris' case, the world is wondering what could be so embarrassing about a hearty laugh, for which she was already mocked in the last election campaign. I was never a fan of Kamala Harris, too pale, too random, she seemed to me too much like a deliberately installed counterpart to the old white man, Joe Biden. But you have to give her credit for one thing: she did her job and waited until her chance came. And she took it. Reducing the Harvard graduate and former prosecutor to her refreshing or - depending on your point of view - irritating laugh is a mistake, especially since Harris already let the nation know on the "Drew Barrymore Show" that her laughter came from her mother and that she grew up among women who all laugh heartily. She would never try to suppress her laughter. Tough speaker Harris is a tough speaker and trained rhetorician who knows how to win battles. In 2003, she ran for the position of district attorney in San Francisco against incumbent Terence Hallinan, who sold himself as "America's most progressive district attorney." Her message, full of subtle humor, was: "We're progressive, like Terence Hallinan, but we're competent like Terence Hallinan is not." She also refused to engage in the mudslinging that no election in the USA can take place without. "I want to promise you that my campaign will not be about negative attacks. I believe we need to talk about the issues and the policies and how we want to move our criminal justice system forward." She was elected in a runoff election with 56.5 percent of the vote. With her victory, she became the first black woman in California to be elected district attorney. Kamala Harris' rhetoric is characterized by a mixture of leadership and empathy. Harris' public appearances and speeches often show an approach that is both decisive and inclusive. But she can also shoot sharply: In 2017, during a questioning session, she pushed former Attorney General Jeff Sessions into the ring corner so consistently that after just three and a half minutes he desperately begged for mercy: "I can't go that fast! It makes me nervous." The videos of this went viral. Well-trained body language The clarity of her statements is underlined by well-trained body language. Harris uses her body to demonstrate her leadership qualities. She stands upright and firmly on the ground, which gives her an immediate presence. She has a point of view and is ready to defend it. If necessary, polemically and with subtle humor. When she speaks, her pace is appropriate, she is not afraid to use silence and pauses, which convey confidence and conviction. She uses very lively gestures and makes Trump look even older in comparison. Her rhetorical skills are shown as if in a magnifying glass at her first major campaign appearance in Wisconsin, where she sharply attacked the Republican candidate in a 17-minute speech. Again, she drew a parallel between the types she had to deal with as a prosecutor and the former president: "As a prosecutor, I had to deal with all kinds of criminals, sex offenders who abuse women, fraudsters who rip off consumers and swindlers who break the rules for their own benefit, so I can tell you one thing: I know guys like Donald Trump." This is not the first time she has used this parallel and she knows how it works: powerful! He who laughs last, laughs best The question remains what America will choose.