Astonishing Journey of Vivek Ramaswamy: Unleashing Big Moves with a Contagious Smile!
With a bold display of confidence and a touch of provocativeness, the biotech entrepreneur, Vivek Ramaswamy, managed to draw his competitors into heated confrontations that dominated the initial Republican primary debate.
Addressing a question that was foremost on everyone’s minds, Vivek Ramaswamy, a 38-year-old political newcomer, positioned front and center in Wednesday’s GOP primary debate, quipped, “First, let me address the question that is on everybody’s mind at home tonight, Who the heck is this skinny guy with a funny last name?”
Drawing a parallel to the former political prodigy Barack Obama, former Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey was quick to point out the allusion, adding, “I’m afraid we’re dealing with the same kind of amateur.”
Yet, Mr. Ramaswamy, the initial millennial candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, was determined not to fade into the background. He entered the scene with gusto, critiquing his rivals, sporting a wide grin, and showing little deference to the more seasoned contenders sharing the stage.
“I’m the only person on the stage who isn’t bought and paid for, so I can say this,” Mr. Ramaswamy declared early on, before dismissing the “climate change agenda” as a “hoax.” This shrewd remark from the entrepreneur and podcast host was a calculated move, explicitly indicating his intention to engage with every candidate on stage while inviting their counterattacks.
His strategy worked remarkably well, as he managed to goad nearly every one of his opponents into confrontations. By the end of the night, Mr. Ramaswamy’s initial self-introduction appeared modest in comparison. He diverted attention from Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida and secured the second-highest speaking time, trailing only behind former Vice President Mike Pence.
“If you have wondered what Trumpism after Trump looks like, ask no further,” commented political writer David Freedlander on the platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
Similar to Donald J. Trump’s approach in 2016, Mr. Ramaswamy embraced his status as a newcomer as a rallying cry and utilized it to criticize the entrenched political establishment he was challenging. However, he distinguished himself from the former president he defends by emphasizing his youth, vigor, and, not to forget, youth.
He pointedly mentioned his young children and suggested that it was time to “hand it over to a new generation to actually fix the problem.” In a later exchange with Mr. Pence, he remarked, “The U.S.S.R. does not exist anymore. It fell back in 1990,” as if providing a modern-world update to Rip Van Winkle.
When asked about the need for a mental acuity test for older candidates, Mr. Ramaswamy asserted that the Republican Party required “someone of a different generation to lead this nation forward.”
And just in case his message hadn’t been hammered home sufficiently, he kicked off his closing remarks by stating, “I was born in 1985.”
All of this followed a debate preparation strategy that involved releasing videos of himself playing tennis shirtless—highlighting his youthful energy—and performing burpees to T.I.’s “Bring ’Em Out,” a hit from 2004, back when Mr. Ramaswamy was a young student at Harvard, known for impersonating Eminem.
Mr. Ramaswamy’s viewpoints largely diverge from those of his generation and the one that follows, both of which lean Democratic. However, as Charlotte Alter, author of “The Ones We’ve Been Waiting For: How a New Generation of Leaders Will Transform America,” pointed out, “The only way the G.O.P. is attracting any young voters is on culture war issues like anti-woke posturing and contrarian hot takes. And that’s where Vivek has planted his flag.”
From one perspective, Mr. Ramaswamy succeeded, even if he struggled to get everyone to pronounce his name correctly. (It’s Vivek, “like cake,” he often clarifies.) Although other contenders, particularly the 44-year-old Mr. DeSantis and the 51-year-old former Governor Nikki Haley of South Carolina, also positioned themselves in opposition to an older generation of Republicans, the image of Mr. Ramaswamy as the fresh, young face of the party emerged as one of the recurring themes of the debate, not solely propagated by himself.
His fellow candidates took turns using his inexperience as a basis for criticism. Mr. Christie likened him to “ChatGPT standing up here,” implying that Mr. Ramaswamy offered quick but occasionally nonsensical responses.
“You have no foreign policy experience, and it shows,” Ms. Haley chided Mr. Ramaswamy, earning perhaps the most substantial applause of the evening.
By: M Z Hossain, Editor Sky Buzz Feed
