Senator Kamala Harris, the first Black woman to become a vice presidential candidate, reached another historic milestone on Wednesday, October 7, 2020, by becoming the first Black woman to take a place on the Vice Presidential Debate stage. Wednesday night’s debate was the second most-watched Vice Presidential debate in history. The first being the Joe Biden vs. Sarah Palin one in 2008.
Senator Kamala Harris and Vice President Mike Pence, who both tested negative for COVID-19 on Tuesday, the day before the debate, were socially-distant and protected by plexiglass dividers while they debated mask-free. The moderator Washington Bureau Chief Susan Page, also mask-free, sat in front of them on stage at a greater distance from the vice presidential nominee and the sitting vice president.
Harris, intent on playing fair, staying calm and relaxed, was repeatedly interrupted by Pence during their “debate” on issues including COVID-19, the Affordable Care Act, pre-existing conditions, the economy, Roe vs. Wade, systemic racism and the peaceful transition of presidential power. Known for his civility, in contrast to Trump, Pence’s rudeness seem to catch the moderator off guard, and allowed him to swiftly take the reins.
Senator Harris, not known for missing a beat, saw what was going on, but remained gracious and restrained. As a Black woman in the U.S. seeking the “2nd highest office of the land,” the onus is disproportionately on her to prove herself and overachieve — largely in the eyes of white America and point-tipping white women voters. Throughout the debate she delivered, modeling good manners; in contrast to her opponent who bullied, and the white woman moderator who enabled him. Harris adeptly inserted the Biden Harris platform whenever she could, and underscored her experience and gravitas as a prosecutor, former Attorney General for the state of California, for those who don’t already know, and in doing so politely situated her Vice Presidential opponent for his rail roading and their distinguished moderator for allowing it.
Harris also built on Biden’s most effective device during the Presidential debate, which was simulating the feel of talking directly to the American people by talking straight to the camera. Pence couldn’t do this effectively because most of the American public already knows that he and his administration are lying, lying specifically about the coronavirus and the administration’s mishandling of it. The vice president is deeply implicated in Trump’s mire in his official role as chair of the White House coronavirus task force, which he reportedly could have been more effective in managing if Trump had allowed it. Pence dutifully continued Trump’s gas lighting by asserting that Democrats are trying to take away the American “peoples’ freedom”; namely, the right to assemble publicly without coronavirus protections in place and the right to have super-spreader events, grotesquely suggesting that that’s what democracy is all about and public health be damned.
Perhaps senator Harris’ most resonant line was one she put squarely to the people about the Trump-Pence administration’s war against the Affordable Care Act, “If you have a pre-existing condition — heart disease, diabetes, breast cancer — they’re coming for you. If you love someone who has a pre-existing condition, they’re coming for you. If you’re under the age of 26 on your parents’ coverage, they’re coming for you.”
She also made a plea to young adults, those less likely to vote, by recognizing the quagmire so many of them are in with crippling student debt: “Across the board, we’ll make sure if you have student loan debt, it’s cut by $10,000.” She continued, “That’s how Joe Biden thinks about the economy, which is it’s about investing in the people of our country.” That and a policy making two years of community college free, and public university tuition free for students with family incomes under $125,000, would provide an educational lifeline for many. Senator Harris wisely offered this strong incentive to encourage young adults to vote and help change the course of our future.