Republicans should not want Harris or Ocasio-Cortez to run

I saw something indicating that Kamala Harris intends to run for president in 2028. This has been accompanied by Republicans celebrating on social media. Then there were talks of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez with a similar response. I think I know why they're celebrating, and I find it concerning.

When Harris first ran, she seemed to embrace the idea that extremism would energize the liberal base. When she replaced Biden as the nominee, she tried to portray herself as more of a moderate. Both tactics have failed, and she has been humiliated twice. Republicans seem to assume that if she wins the Democrats' nominated, she will lose once again.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is openly socialist. Her views could be considered even more extreme than what we have seen from Harris. If Harris would help the Democrats, so should Ocasio-Cortez.

The 2028 election is far from over. We don't know who will be running for the Republicans. There are also a lot of voters with short memories. We don't know how voters will perceive Harris or Ocasio-Cortez in 2028.

This reminded me of when Donald Trump first ran for the presidency. There were multiple reports of Democrats voting in Republican primaries to ensure Trump won the nomination. A lot of Democrats viewed Trump as their best path to the White House. I can't personally verify those reports, but primaries were ongoing. It seems like a certainty that at least some Democrats would have voted for Trump because these reports gave people ideas. Simply put, some of Trump's harshest critics likely helped Trump win the election.

The bottom line is that nobody should want to risk electing a horrible candidate just because it could potentially help them win an election. Ideally, we should want the best candidates from both parties. That way, if your side loses, you won't suffer as much.

American politics is essentially about voting for the lesser of two evils. Rather than voting between which awful candidate will do less damage, I would prefer to vote for the best of two good candidates. Voters should not root for the worst candidate that the opposing party has to offer.