I mean yes, the "impression" you get is bar for bar that of the standard right-wing Trump voter, down to the bad-faith interpretation. People who think the way you do in the US were always going to vote for Trump and were never going to vote for a Democrat, regardless of their platform.

If you're pointing out that the left's message didn't appeal to to the right, that seems tautological.

But a candidate could still be a democrat / somewhat left while having decent border control, meritocracy and thinking trans is a bit weird.

No they wouldn't, the DNC loves to alienate their base and try to appeal to the center and the right. That's what lost Harris the race. Not (as Trumpist propaganda will tell you) her radical leftist social agenda, but her utter abandonment of anything even resembling leftist principles in an attempt to bring Republicans into the fold.