A historic day occurred when Kamala Harris was named the 32nd Attorney General of California, and yet another one after she became the first African American and Indian American woman to run for Vice President or President on a major party ticket. Before her Attorney General promotion in 2010, she was the District Attorney, and before that Deputy District Attorney. Harris has come under attack for her history as a prosecutor, but she has a very large influence and effect on many people in this country .Not only does she have a very long list of qualifications and knowledge, but also because of her accomplishment of being Attorney General of California, and her putting in the hard work, and becoming one of the first African American women to be nominated for Vice President (VP).
Kamala Harris has been very open about how she does not want to be defined by her ethnicity and said that she simply wants to be described as an American. She stated once that she will “do everything in her power to help Biden become the next President,” and that is her biggest goal for the future. Biden has shown his confidence in her as well, and their mutual views and goals on the campaign stay first.
She performed strongly against Pence in the vice presidential debate, as described by BBC. The debate, which took place on October 7, was memorable. “Mr. Vice President, I’m speaking,” Harris said while answering a question and being interrupted by Pence. This moment went viral as it resonated with and was brought to attention by many people over social media.
August 11, 2020, Presidential candidate and former VP Joe Biden announced he had picked Kamala Harris to be his running mate for his campaign. Kamala Harris has become a very important figure for the 2020 presidential campaign. She showed her ability and knowledge several times throughout the campaign, and most recently with the VP debate. Kamala has been the U.S. Senator for California since 2017, and was previously a politician and attorney general, although her career past has been since controversial to her campaign, and many people are wondering: Is Kamala Harris the right choice?
Born in Oakland on October 20, 1969, Kamala Harris grew up with her mom and sister, and visited India several times, but Harris once stated that her mom blended with “Oakland’s Black Culture,” as Harris stated in an interview with BBC news, and she said it was reflected through her sister and herself. Kamala Harris attended Howard University for four years, then went on to pursue her career path as a district attorney, until she got elected Attorney General.
Harris began to be known as harsh in the number of convictions, as she put an extremely large number of people in jail throughout her career. “I think the choice of someone so deeply linked to the prison industrial complex seems out of touch with the current political climate surrounding police,” a Franklin student, who wanted to remain anonymous, said. This could be challenging to her campaign, because many in the Democratice Party are calling for criminal justice reform and for the system to be more compassionate..
Harris’s relationship with Joe Biden before she started running with him was also a concern in the campaign. Her evolution of her relationship with him started out rocky, as she was debating him during the Democratic primary, and criticized him about his views on racism. During the debate, Harris stated, “I do not believe you are a racist, and I agree with you when you commit yourself to the importance of common ground, but it was hurtful and personal to hear you talk about the reputations of two senators who built their reputations and careers on the segregations of races in America.” She was very effective at landing criticism at Biden during the 2020 presidential primary, and was not seen as being a friend to Biden. However, they strengthened their relationship when Biden asked her to be his running mate, and since then she has been very advantageous towards his campaign. The U.S. Senator has received many different views and feedback based on her previous record, and she has addressed her harsh ways as an attorney and a prosecutor as well. She had stated that she was proud to have worked to “reform a system that is badly in need of reform,” and she does not regret her large number of prosecutions.
Harris has addressed other issues though, such as the ongoing protests for Black Lives Matter (BLM) and riots in cities, due to police brutality. Harris has gotten criticism for supporting the BLM protests even as some of them become violent, and contrasted President Trump’s statements on the protests. “Nothing that we have achieved that has been about progress, in particular around civil rights, has come without a fight, and so I always am going to interpret these protests as an essential component of evolution in our country — as an essential component or mark of a real democracy,” Harris shared in a statement. She does think that they are necessary, and Joe Biden also believes that the police need reform.
Another concern that was brought up by some people were Harris and Biden’s views on taxes, and if they would raise them if they got elected. Senator Harris denied that they would raise taxes, unless you make over 400,000 dollars a year.
Harris inspires many people, including students at our high school. Harris has brought a lot of questions and wonders to the current campaign and election, and her past career comes up as layered, complex, qualifying, or historical at different times, but despite the wide variety of views, she keeps focus on creating a chance for Biden to win.
