California Senator Harris Is Biden’s Pick For V.P.

Sonora, CA — Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden today named California Sen. Kamala Harris as his running mate.

The pick makes history on several fronts. Harris is not only the first Black woman to compete on a major party’s presidential ticket, but she is also an Indian American. In addition, the pick acknowledges the vital role black voters will play in Biden’s attempt to defeat President Donald Trump.

“I have the great honor to announce that I’ve picked Kamala Harris a fearless fighter for the little guy, and one of the country’s finest public servants as my running mate,” Biden tweeted. In a text message to supporters, Biden stated, “Together, with you, we’re going to beat Trump.”

In March, Biden pledged to pick a woman as his Vice President. Harris and Biden will appear together on Wednesday in Wilmington to deliver remarks on their candidacy.  Proponents add that in adding Harris to the ticket, Biden can point to her relatively centrist record on issues such as health care and her background in law enforcement in the nation’s largest state.

The 55-year-old Harris was elected to the Senate in 2016 after serving as California’s attorney general. Harris competed against Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination but left the race before voting began as she struggled to raise money. The choice of Harris has Biden embracing a former rival from the Democratic primary. One of Harris’ standout moments of her presidential campaign came at the expense of Biden when she slammed his past opposition to school busing in a heated exchange on the debate stage.

Shortly after the announcement was made President Donald Trump’s campaign blasted the pick, calling Harris “phony.” This afternoon at a White House briefing, President Trump said he was “a little surprised” by the pick, stating that incident “was very disrespectful to Joe Biden” during the Democratic primaries. He added that Harris ”did very poorly” when she ran for the nomination, noting she dropped out in December, blasting, “That’s like a poll.”

Biden’s search for a VP, including Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Florida Rep. Val Demings, California Rep. Karen Bass, former Obama national security adviser Susan Rice and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. While a woman has never served as president or vice president in the United States, two women have been nominated as running mates on major party tickets. In 1984, Democrat Geraldine Ferraro was chosen and in 2008 Republican Sarah Palin. Both lost in the general election.