There are two weeks to go until the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election. Interest, speculation, and tension have been building all year.
Most news coverage of the election is intended to sway voters, hyperbolic to a fault, and not tailored to the specific information needs of procurement and supply chain professionals. What we really need to know is what each major party candidate has said and what likely outcomes that would lead to.
In this four-part special series, we will cover the policies and plans of Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican Candidate Former President Donald J. Trump as well as how they compare.
Part 1: Playing Politics with Supply Chains
Is it possible to discuss politics without stoking division or getting into trouble? It is if you stick to a set list of policies, limit research to primary sources so that all information is in the candidate’s own words, and invoke ‘Roadhouse Rules.’
In part 1, I explain the intent behind the series, explain the policy areas we will examine, and outline our hopes and expectations for passionate but constructive discussion that stays focused on what the election means for corporate strategy.
Part 2: Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris
Vice President Kamala is 60 Years old and a former Senator and Attorney General from the State of California. She became the presumptive Democratic nominee on July 21, 2024 when President Biden suspended his campaign for re-election, and the official nominee on August 22 when she accepted the nomination at the Democratic National Convention.
Harris’s clearest policy positions include renewable energy and the environment, with little detail available to clarify her position on trade and tariffs. She has made strong statements about China, specifically around the race to dominate AI, domestic labor protections, and intellectual property concerns.
Part 3: Republican Candidate Former President Donald J. Trump
Former President Donald Trump is 78 Years old, and a former businessman/real estate developer as well as the former host of The Apprentice. He became the nominee on July 18, 2024 when he accepted the nomination at the Republican National Convention
Trump’s clearest policy positions include trade, and China, with little detail available to clarify his position on emissions and the environment. He has made strong statements about energy policy, both the cost and availability of energy, and the importance of emphasizing domestic production over imports from other parts of the world.
Part 4: Head-to-Head Comparison of Candidate Policies
With less than two weeks until election day, procurement and supply chain professionals must have plans in place for the eventuality of either candidate being voted into office, focusing on the areas where they agree as much as where they differ.
When lined up side by side, this election will give us either supply chain policy based on certain industries or one that is focused on domestic production, exploring a diverse range of energy sources or the effective cost of the energy that is available, opposing plans on corporate taxes, but philosophical alignment on China.
