History-maker Harris could become most powerful VP ever seen
With Joe Biden on track to win the presidency, Kamala Harris, his deputy, has history in her sights as the first woman, and first person of colour, to serve as the US vice-president.
Much has been made of Ms Harris’s biracial background and her unique place in the history books. But if she is elected to high office, her position as vice-president will be distinctive for another reason – she will be deputising for the oldest president in American history, a fact likely to yield her more power than any of her predecessors.
The 56-year-old is viewed as a potential president-in-waiting by Democrats who believe that Mr Biden, who turns 78 this month, will only serve one term if elected to the White House.
What is more, in the event that the US Senate becomes tied, with Republicans and Democrats both holding 50 seats, as vice-president, Ms Harris could also have the power to settle tie-breaker votes in the chamber.
Ms Harris may seek to reshape the role of vice-president and begin establishing the Democratic Party’s 2024 agenda as she waits in the wings.
In doing so, she will have to walk a delicate balance, appealing to the progressive base of her party on issues like climate change, without alarming moderates by championing radical changes to things like healthcare.
Ms Harris’s friends and colleagues have offered some insight into what sort of vice-president she would be. At the top of her agenda is championing social and racial justice reform, issues that informed her early childhood and which she has repeatedly touted on the campaign trail.
Manny Yekutiel, a Democratic activist from Ms Harris’s native San Francisco, said that he experienced her ability to connect with voters first hand while helping her presidential campaign. He believes that her motivations for entering politics centred around her desire to reform the criminal justice system.
“I don’t think her political ideologies have changed a whole lot over the years,” he said.
But Ms Harris is also a shrewd political pragmatist, he added, saying “being flexible is important”.
Mark Buell, a major Democrat donor in San Francisco who was among her first substantial backers and has continued to be a cheerleader ever since, agreed that she would probably “play a more active role by virtue of Joe Biden’s age”.
He described her as a “quick study” who is “comfortable in many different environments”, and named healthcare, international diplomacy and police reform as areas in which she could most excel. “Our reputation [abroad] has been so sullied by the Trump administration that there is a yearning, particularly on the part of Europe, to see better leadership,” he said. “I harken back to how well Obama was received around the world, and I think it speaks to our better nature that we now have an African-american vice-president and a woman vicepresident.”
Mr Buell also argued that Ms Harris’s past in law enforcement would make her a more credible negotiator with police forces, police unions and pro-police politicians, though it might prove a weakness with some among the Black Lives Matter movement.
It is possible that Ms Harris will take her inspiration from Dick Cheney, widely considered to have been the most powerful politician in the role, and who was given a broad remit by George W Bush to screen judicial nominees, oversee the government budget and even to reshape legislation.
Mr Biden, himself a former vicepresident, seems very willing to share the burden of governing with his number two. He talks fondly of his relationship with Barack Obama, whom he served under for eight years, describing himself as the first into the Oval Office and the last to leave it when the tough decisions were called.
“That’s what I asked Kamala. I asked Kamala to be the last voice in the room,” he said.
‘It speaks to our better nature that we have an AfricanAmerican vice-president and a woman vice-president’