You know that American politics is turning into a sad joke when a supposedly-serious presidential campaign tries to demonize laughter.

Yet, bizarrely, Donald Trump’s humorless gaggle of strategists decided that their first point of attack on Kamala Harris would be: Her laugh. No, seriously! Donald himself launched the offensive – “I call her Laffin’ Kamala,” he snorted. “You ever watch her laugh?” he implored listeners, declaring, “She’s crazy. She’s nuts.”

Uh… no. Like normal people, she laughs – often, naturally, and joyously. So do I. Maybe you do, too. But, one GOP outfit sniffed that this is “inappropriate” for a woman running for president. And a Republican senatorial doofus from Louisiana even barked that Harris should act more like Margaret Thatcher, Britain’s former right-wing prime minister, pointing out that she “didn’t giggle.” The sour old senator then mansplained that Harris’ laughter made people think she’s “a ding-dong” – even though the dinging seems to be coming from his own head.

Interestingly, though, Trump’s orchestrated snark attack on Harris’ laughter is working. For Harris! By repeatedly pointing out that she has unscripted moments of laughter, Republicans actually make people feel positive toward her. I can attest from my own time politicking in a supposedly conservative state that laughter unites people – I quickly learned that humor is a key that can unlock the mind.

Moreover, the GOP’s churlish demonization of laughter only highlights the fact that, in contrast to Kamala, Trump is a grump! Note that we never see him laugh. He smirks, gloats, and often puts on a smarmy grin – but he never has a joyous belly laugh or shows any genuine sense of fun. Sad for him… but sadder for us if we let his dour demeanor define our America.

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