Biden makes historic choice for VP
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US presidential candidate Joe Biden named California Senator Kamala Harris as his running mate, making history by selecting the first black woman to compete on a major party鈥檚 presidential ticket and acknowledging the vital role black voters will play in his bid to defeat President Donald Trump.
In choosing Harris, Biden embraced a former rival from the Democratic primary who is familiar with the unique rigor of a national campaign. The 55-year-old first-term senator, who is also of South Asian descent, is one of the party鈥檚 most prominent figures. She quickly became a top contender for the No. 2 spot after her own White House campaign ended.
In announcing the pick on Tuesday, Biden called Harris a 鈥渇earless fighter for the little guy, and one of the country鈥檚 finest public servants.鈥
Harris joins Biden at a moment of national crisis. The coronavirus pandemic has claimed the lives of more than 160,000 people in the US, far more than the toll experienced in other countries. Business closures and disruptions resulting from the pandemic have caused severe economic problems. Unrest, meanwhile, has emerged across the country.
Trump鈥檚 uneven handling of the virus crisis has given Biden an opening, and he enters the campaign in strong position against the incumbent president.
In adding Harris to the ticket, he can point to her relatively centrist record on issues such as health care and her background in law enforcement in the nation鈥檚 largest state.
Harris鈥 record as California attorney general and district attorney in San Francisco was heavily scrutinized during the Democratic primary and turned away some liberals and younger black voters who saw her as out of step on issues of racism in the legal system and police brutality.
She declared herself a 鈥減rogressive prosecutor鈥 who backs law enforcement reforms.
Biden, who spent eight years as former President Barack Obama鈥檚 vice president, has spent months weighing who would fill that same role in his White House.
He pledged in March to select a woman as his vice president, easing frustration among Democrats that the presidential race would center on two white men in their 70s.
The vice-presidential pick carries increased significance this year. If elected, Biden would be 78 when inaugurated in January, the oldest man to ever assume the presidency. He鈥檚 spoken of himself as a transitional figure and hasn鈥檛 fully committed to seeking a second term in 2024.
Harris, born in 1964 to a Jamaican father and Indian mother, spent much of her formative years in Berkeley, California. Harris won her first election in 2003 when she became San Francisco鈥檚 district attorney. She created a reentry program for low-level drug offenders and cracked down on student truancy.
She was elected California鈥檚 attorney general in 2010, the first woman and Black person to hold the job, and focused on issues including the foreclosure crisis. She declined to defend the state鈥檚 Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage and was later overturned by the US Supreme Court.
After being elected to the Senate in 2016, she quickly gained attention for her assertive questioning of Trump administration officials during congressional hearings.
Harris launched her presidential campaign in early 2019 with the slogan 鈥淜amala Harris For the People,鈥 a reference to her courtroom work.
But the early promise of her campaign eventually faded. Her law enforcement background prompted skepticism from some progressives, and she struggled to land on a consistent message that resonated with voters. Facing fundraising problems, she abruptly withdrew from the race in December 2019.
At an event for Biden earlier this summer, Harris said: 鈥淛oe has empathy, he has a proven track record of leadership and more than ever before we need a president of the United States who understands who the people are, sees them where they are, and has a genuine desire to help and knows how to fight to get us where we need to be.鈥
During the same event, she bluntly assailed Trump, labeling him a 鈥渄rug pusher鈥 for his promotion of the unproven malaria drug hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19.
After Trump tweeted 鈥渨hen the looting starts, the shooting starts鈥 in response to protests about the death of George Floyd, Harris said his remarks 鈥測et again show what racism looks like.鈥
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