Chachi vidhayak hain hamari: Meena Harris and ‘household raj’ in US politics

Let us suppose you’re the President or the Vice President of the United States. You have actually tens of millions of followers. How about you begin promoting them shirts, caps, books, mugs, and so forth, maybe along with your face or slogans on it? You might even do influencer advertising out of your social media accounts by endorsing merchandise or causes. Imagine simply how a lot cash you may make.
Some of this may be authorized. Some of it most likely wouldn’t. But all of it might be unhealthy optics. You are commander-in-chief, not Rihanna.
Fortunately or sadly, there’s a means round this. And it might be fairly acquainted to the Indian voter. Politicians having a deep dedication to their households.
Meet Meena Harris. As The Politico explains,
“Last August, after Biden picked Kamala, Meena pushed the Biden team to sell a shirt in the campaign store that she designed with fellow influencer CLEO WADE. The shirt was emblazoned, “THE FIRST BUT NOT THE LAST,” alongside an image of a younger Kamala.“
Say you’re a Biden-Harris fan, wanting to help your pricey chief(s). So you’re taking your hard-earned cash to the Biden marketing campaign retailer and get a shirt that tells the world you’re a liberal. The marketing campaign shirt prices far more than an abnormal piece of clothes. But you pay anyway as a result of the excessive markup helps the ’trigger.’ Don’t fear if Meena Harris advantages from this personally when it comes to cash or publicity.
As a Biden-Harris supporter, you do your karma. Don’t fear about who eats the fruit. That would possibly simply be spin that the primary lady Vice President of the United States is placing on probably the most well-known line from the Bhagavad Gita. Hey Indians, are you not proud?
I’m being unfair. Numerous American politicians have a facet hustle of this kind. Remember that marketing campaign contributions go to the marketing campaign itself and never the non-public checking account of the candidate. The two are separate authorized entities. But you may all the time use the marketing campaign cash for marketing campaign associated functions, resembling hiring publicity managers and the like. And if there occurs to be a detailed member of the family who simply occurs to run a media and consulting agency, who might fault you for wanting to rent them?
Meena Harris has a level from Harvard Law School. She runs a style firm that sells such inspirational T-shirts. She additionally has some media ventures, additionally apparently devoted to producing movies that encourage individuals to be extra like her aunt. And she has even written a e-book known as “Kamala and Maya’s big idea,” which is at present No. 4 on the New York Times bestsellers record and has Kamala’s likeness on the quilt.
So did Meena quit a profession as a extremely paid lawyer to pursue a lifetime of noble poverty, devoted to “inspiring” individuals? Or was this extra worthwhile? You resolve.
Again, in case you are a Biden-Harris fan, you needn’t fear about this. You can simply be ok with getting Phenomenal Kamala Harris Swimsuit,” “Phenomenal Kamala Tank,” and “Kamala T-shirt.” By the way in which, that’s the title of the clothes line that Meena owns: Phenomenal.
Meena likes that phrase: Phenomenal. Her media enterprise can also be named “Phenomenal productions.” As the Politico notes:
“Meena introduced she was beginning the manufacturing firm with BRAD JENKINS, a former Obama White House staffer, weeks after the election. One of her first tasks was a two-minute video that includes clips of her aunt, which debuted the day earlier than Inauguration Day.
“We celebrate Kamala Harris, the first woman and first Black American and Asian American to serve as vice president of the United States of America,” the video’s narrator says.
Meena’s firm produced the video with the Supermajority Education Fund, a nonprofit dedicated to girls’s management. (An allied tremendous PAC, Supermajority, spent greater than $1 million operating advertisements backing Biden and opposing President DONALD TRUMP final 12 months; most of its funding got here from a brilliant PAC began by GEORGE SOROS). On YouTube, the advert lists Meena as a producer.“
The time period ‘PAC’ stands for ‘Political Action Committee.’ That is a bunch of people that spend cash for some political trigger. An excellent PAC will get funding from one other tremendous PAC which acquired most of its cash from George Soros. This tremendous PAC is allied to a “non-profit” which is “devoted to women’s leadership.” And this allied non-profit produces a video with Meena’s firm. Nothing to see right here, of us, aside from the very best of intentions.
By the way in which, what’s a “super PAC” and the way is it totally different from a PAC? Unlike a PAC, a “super PAC” has no limits on how a lot cash it might increase and/or spend. As a consequence, a brilliant PAC will not be allowed to legally coordinate with the candidate and should work independently of their marketing campaign. You know, like one tremendous PAC pays one other tremendous PAC whose allied non-profit makes movies with corporations owned by relations of the candidate. Transparency in all places.
“The White House mentioned it didn’t know if Meena was paid for the advert,or whether or not her firm volunteered its time. If the previous, it would violate White House coverage. Asked if she was paid by Supermajority, Meena didn’t reply.“
So did Meena receives a commission for these movies or not? The aunt says she doesn’t know and the niece says she gained’t inform. On the great facet, Kamala’s incapability to see is likely to be a tribute to the character of Gandhari within the Mahabharata. As an Indian, I do know I’m thrilled.
As Axios notes:
“Phenomenal has bought a number of different gadgets impressed by Kamala Harris since Biden introduced her as his operating mate.
They embody a sweatshirt with “MVP” on it, standing for “Madam Vice President,” and one other with the phrase “I’m speaking” on the entrance — a nod to a second when Kamala Harris complained about being interrupted throughout a vice-presidential debate.After Kamala Harris acquired the “too-ambitious” criticism, her niece created and bought a pink sweatshirt with “AMBITIOUS” written on the entrance.“Inspiring people is good work. And it is big business. Incidentally, there are some ethics policies surrounding such “inspiration,” however as Politico writes:
“But the policy has been trickier to enforce with Meena than some other family members, given how much Kamala’s image is intertwined with her business projects.”
Of course it has been trickier. Meena Harris is simply too unbiased to get slowed down by such issues. Be it American liberals or India’s farmers, her unbiased empire of “inspiration” runs throughout continents.
But you don’t have to fret in regards to the cash path. Go get your self a pleasant shirt or hoodie with an inspirational message from the aunt. Show the world that you’re a liberal. Don’t fear. You should not the primary to fall for this and also you most definitely gained’t be the final.