Tuesday August 11, 2020 ~ USA
Commentary by Mary P Brooke, editor | West Shore Voice News
The United States is in turmoil in so many ways in 2020 — most notably their lack of grip on the spread of COVID-19 but also the anti-racism protests and economic crisis looming. All of this in a presidential election year in which incumbent president Donald Trump is already pulling out the old bag of tricks that has worked in times past.
The cards have lined up for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden (former VP to former US President Barack Obama). There is a pandemic to contain, an economy to protect, and racial issues to resolve. All of this fits nicely under the Democratic ticket. He also needed a woman as his vice-presidential pick for all the obvious reasons (both social pressures for equality and a clear balance against Trump’s with Mike Pence as VP), and even more so that she be a woman of colour.
Kamala Harris is Joe Biden’s pick. In choosing the fiesty 56-year-old lawyer who — as junior United States Senator from California since 2017 is a skilled politician and with black-American and Tamil Indian heritage to boot, Biden may have just chosen the first woman president of the United States of America. Given his age of 78 years, Biden may not last one term to age 82, let alone two terms to age 86.
Accused of being ‘too ambitious’ (as if that isn’t a quality required in a high-profile politician?), Harris has more than administrative and political credentials. She’s a fighter at a time when the US has many battles on its hands, and sharp-witted in a way that will probably flatten Trump in many a debate once things get rolling with the campaign.
Harris is not your mainstream political scrapper, she fights with panache — for herself and for the causes at hand.
As Rolling Stone Magazine put it today: “While it would have been more heartening to see one (a woman president) elected outright, frankly, America may have needed the push.”
Good news for Canada:
For Canada this is very good news. A black running-mate for president in our country’s closest neighbour supports anti-racism efforts and boosts the gender equity file for women in politics.
Even if she doesn’t win, Harris will be a fine political comrade to most aspects of Canadian politics going forward, if only by reflection.
Of interest, Harris attended high school in Montreal long ago, when her mother had a professorial post at McGill University.
Dates on the calendar:
August 11, 2020 may be a day that democracy-minded, black-lives-matter, and feminists mark on their calendar, for the many strides forward that Biden’s pick has put in motion.
The US presidential election is set for November 3, 2020. Inauguration of the next president will be in January 2021.
