Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

Well, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden sure kept the nation in suspense with regard to who his running mate would be in this fall's presidential election. California Senator Kamala Harris is one step closer to being the first woman who may become the vice president of the United States, as Joe Biden picked Harris to be his running mate. Biden kept his cards close to his chest as political analysts kept the guessing game going for weeks on who Biden would pick. However, the wily one never gave a convincing hint as to who he would pick, instead let everyone else do the talking. If the Biden/Harris ticket wins in November, he would be the oldest president and Harris would be the first Black woman to become the vice president. Harris is in the same company as Hillary Clinton is to Republicans in that she stands her ground and is a skilled debater. Republicans may not like her but they know that they will have to respect her not just because she is a distinguish senator, but also because of her long career in politics. She is a west coast politician who learned from one of the best in former San Francisco mayor, Willie Brown, by whom she was groomed during her first run in politics. Not to be outdone was President Trump who called Harris a "nasty woman", one of several derogative words that the president seems to insist on using when it comes to addressing women of color. Republicans who will stump for the president can't be very pleased to see that the president is continuing his boyish behavior when it comes to seeing women on an equal playing level, as the president will certainly need the female vote. This is not 2016 when conservative women were enamored by his presence, but he has since alienated many of the women who voted for him in 2016.

One has to wonder how current Vice President Mike Pence will conduct himself when he and Harris have their debate. Pence, being a so-called Christian man knows that he can't use the kind of language that the president uses when addressing women in his presence, nor can he be seen as patronizing them in an effort to make them look weak. If he tries that, Harris may be the kind of woman that can embarrass Pence, especially over sensitive issues during the months leading to the November election. By picking Harris, Biden may have shown women that he is sensitive to the issues that came up earlier in the campaigning, when conservative media tried to portray Biden as the creepy guy in the raincoat when he was accused by some women as being on "the touchy side". Nonetheless Biden, by looking at women (black and white) as his running mate, may be signaling to the nation and the world, that America like some other nations, is not afraid to have a woman in charge. In addition, Biden may have taken a big bite out of the race card, in that the folks at Fox will have to tread lightly on race, seeing how they were when Obama ran for president, and race should not be a part of the conversation. Don't bet the house on that one. If, and when the debates occur, Biden being a much more experienced individual who was one heartbeat away from being president, probably knows more about the office as vice president than everything that President Trump has learned, or didn't want to learn as president. President Trump can't try to be the "imposing figure" as he did with Clinton, as Biden can stand eye to eye with the president. Without backup, Trump backs down. The president's alleged "good friend" in Moscow may or may not pull out all of the stops to help defeat Biden, if he has gotten all that he can from Trump as president. As many in the intelligence community have said, Putin may have used Trump as a "useful asset", but still may have "something on" the president, in that he may still be of use. After all, it has been reported, that the president allegedly got money from Russia when no one would loan the president money. A big question for the voters. How can a billionaire have a hard time getting money from an American bank if he is so successful? For now, the spotlight is on Biden and Kamala Harris, as they get ready to bring their message to the voters on what they intend to do to turn the nation back to where it was when President Trump came into office. Trump in the meantime will be busy on twitter, as the pandemic is expected to be even worse by the time November arrives. Remember, the world is watching. So is God.

Photo Kamala Harris