Firs published in India Life and Times magazine in March, 2019

There is a lot of enthusiasm about the candidacy of Kamala Harris, daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants. Media talking heads are comparing her with Barack Obama.
I should be excited to see a woman with an Indian name and heritage running to become the president of the United States. But I am not. It has nothing to do with her being a woman or a Democrat. My opposition arises from my belief that she is in the camp of the ultra-liberal socialist wing of the Democratic Party. Her actions and speeches in California and in the Senate prove that. I do not care about the other accusations people hurl at her.
Harris is sure of gaining the support of most Indian-Americans who were born in the US. These youth never had to stand in immigration lines and had everything they wanted. They did not experience the hardships of life nor did they have to make tough choices. They are idealistic and want someone to fix all the problems in the world. That is a noble ambition, but not workable or practical. They are still living in disappointment over Hillary Clintonâ€™s loss in 2016.
Kamala Harris was born to highly educated upper-class parents. Her father, a professor at Stanford University, came from Jamaica, and mother, a cancer researcher, from India. After receiving a degree in law, she got involved in local politics with the Democratic Party. She was a deputy district attorney in Oakland, California. In 2004 she was elected as the District Attorney of San Francisco. In 2010, she got elected the as the stateâ€™s attorney general. This position brought her national attention. In 2012, she was invited to speak at the Democratic National Convention.
In 2016, she defeated the long-time senator from California, Barbara Boxer, in the Democratic primary and became the candidate for the Senate seat. It was an easy victory, thrusting her into the limelight as the junior senator from California. Even before completing her first six-year term in the Senate, she has her eyes set on the highest political position in the US. People say Harris is following in Obamaâ€™s footsteps.
I am an Indian-American who came to this country legally in 1973 with a few dollars in my pocket. I left India, like many at that time, looking for better opportunities outside the country. Most Indians came to America with hope alone. Most of them found opportunities, enjoyed the freedom the US offered, and created a good life for themselves and for many others.
I do not talk for all Indians, but my association with several Indian-Americans drives the belief that most Indians hold conservative values and are not in any political affiliation. They want freedom and do not want oppression from the rulers. We have seen the failure of socialism in our homeland and in several other countries, the latest in Venezuela. A country with vast oil wealth is in political and economic turmoil. People are fleeing for security and in search of a better life.
India started off as a socialist country after independence, under the first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. Instead of improving the plight of the poor, the country started going backwards. The leaders who came after Nehru realized that socialism would not lift the poor from poverty. India gave up socialism and is now emerging as a world power economically. It still has many poor and many problems, but things seem to be brightening.
Most Indian-Americans immigrated to the US in the 70s and the 80s. There were no IT jobs then. Many nurses from poor families came here legally, worked hard and raised their families. Most of them are now well established in the country.
Many of us sponsored our siblings and brought them to this country. Many Indian families benefited through chain migration. Together, we have contributed a lot to the Indian economy by sending money and starting business ventures there.
Most Indians are not closed-minded people. We have tolerance for most social movements and programs, but there is a limit to it. We see a sea of change in this country caused by ultra-liberal teachings from schools and politicians. The Democratic Party is not the party of Kennedy, Johnson, Carter and Bill Clinton any more. The ultra-Left wing in the party has taken control since Obamaâ€™s election. We donâ€™t agree with the out-of-control gender classifications and late-term abortion laws enacted in New York State and the very loose definition of marriage and genderless restrooms.
Most of us do not see discrimination in this country as the ultra-Left liberals complain about and most news media portray. I have never faced discrimination from the government while carrying out my business or harassment from police (except for traffic tickets.) Most of our children got into good universities based on their academic qualifications.
We have no problem with white people. Most of them respect us because their doctors and other healthcare providers are often our children, wives, husbands, brothers and sisters. We do not get in trouble with the police as we obey the laws. The police departments in this country and courts are far better than in any other country in the world, especially India. We can talk to a police officer in the US without facing abusive language or suffering a beating.
When we see people crossing the southern border illegally, our memories go back to the time when we went to US consulates and applied for a visa. That meant filling up numerous forms, undergoing medical tests and getting police clearance. We do not agree with this open border policy of the ultra-liberal Democrats. We want immigrants to walk into this country through the front door, not break in.
I noticed that Kamala Harris did not attend the funeral of an officer, Ronil Singh, in California, who was killed in the line of duty by an illegal alien. I hope she understands that there are criminals crossing the border illegally. She is against a meaningful control at the border. She even compared ICE to the KKK on the Senate floor. Under her watch, California has become a sanctuary state. Criminals can hide from federal agents in several major cities in the state. Is this fair justice?
We Indian-Americans have earned what we got in this country, we do not apply for welfare or unemployment benefits. We have no problem paying reasonable taxes. We know that in a socialist system, rulers like Harris want to distribute wealth evenly among all. That will only create more lazy people. It will take away the incentive from people to work hard and improve the economy. Under socialism, the government will run out of other peopleâ€™s money very fast. What happens then?
Harris has built a life based on political ambition and is working hard to fulfill that. However, we are ordinary people who have built a life with hard work. Socialism can destroy this country and its way of life. The ruling class will lose nothing, but the middle class will suffer. That is what happened in all the nations that experimented with Socialism/Communism; the rulers benefitted and those who were ruled carried all the burden. In Russia, Communism/Socialism replaced the bourgeois with the Politburo.
If Harris becomes president, that will energize the socialists in this country. She will promote policies to break all social norms. She will become a magnet for Illegal aliens from all over the world who would try to enter through the southern border. We want legal, not illegal immigration.
Since she announced her candidacy, Sen. Harris has tweeted support for India and PM Modi.
Going back to socialism, there is the threat that a permanent underclass will emerge. Many people will prefer handouts over work. Sen. Harris will have no choice but to raise taxes to fulfill all the promises she will be making. She is promising free health care for all, including for illegal aliens.
Everything, including higher education, will become free. But how many people will keep working? Who will care to invest when most of their earnings will be gone as taxes? Incentive is the fuel for growth. The progress we see today and enjoy came from hard work by people who took risks, invested money, and worked hard. It is the people, not the government, who create wealth.
Once the government starts pushing people to give up much of what they earn, many will lose interest in hard work. People will look for ways to cheat the tax system. Wealth will leave this country. Under-the-table payments will thrive. Investments will dry up. No more foreign investment will come to this country. The result will be higher unemployment, and the receiving lines will get bigger.
The end result will be creation of a permanent underclass. I remember one of Obamaâ€™s speeches: â€˜No red, no blue, no white, no black, no yellow, no brown, only one America.â€™ Unfortunately, that did not materialize under his presidency and the country got more polarized. What America needs today is leaders with common sense who see reality and work for the benefit of both the poor and the rich. Forget about the mistakes of the past. Let us talk about how we can get along. Give up political correctness and have tolerance for differing opinions. These are the reasons why people like me will not support Kamala Harris for president.

Why I donâ€™t support Kamala Harris (B John Kunthara)