We’ve heard from Kamala Harris about her own difficult experience on the 2020 presidential campaign. She chronicles day by day her ordeal in her new memoir, “107 Days.” The book details her emotions, frustrations, and the complex relationship she navigated with President Joe Biden while preparing for key moments in the election. It was an angry and disappointed Harris who answered the call when Biden first called her. This was only hours before her pivotal debate performance with then-President Donald Trump.
In a candid reflection, Harris recounts a call from Biden where he suggested that influential associates connected to his brother were unwilling to support her. This discovery was a lonely one, especially as she began to fully appreciate the monumental task in front of her. No one was feeling that pressure more than Harris. She only had three months to take down Trump and his shadowy web of right-wing influencers.
Harris’s husband, Doug Emhoff, described her emotional experience during this difficult time. He began to see the stress, frustration, disappointment, and realities of being out on the campaign trail begin to wear on her. As justified as these feelings may have been, Harris had until this point avoided going after Biden, having defended him during months of worrying about his mental acuity.
From a senior aide to David Plouffe this was the blunt truth of the political landscape that Biden confronts, “people hate [Joe Biden]. This sharp comment made a heavy situation even more volatile. As Harris began mounting her own challenge to Trump, she came to see him differently—as a truly dangerous adversary. With great enthusiasm, she referred to her upcoming debate as “a major prizefight.” Today’s confrontation has great importance not only for the United States, but for the whole world.
In her memoir, Harris describes the surreal and fraught meeting with Biden on the 4th of July. She embraced him and noted that “he was so fragile to the touch.” Yet this moment crystallized the tensions of their relationship. Harris has walked a fine line between recognizing Biden’s exceptional governing prowess while critiquing his campaign approach. Then she began to worry that he’d be unable to effectively campaign, which planted yet another seed of discord in their relationship.
Harris’s real triumph here was the grace and poise she showed when faced with Trump’s racist gendered attacks about her identity. In response to Trump’s assertion that she “happened to turn Black” a few years ago, she expressed outrage: “Today he wants me to prove my race. What next? He will claim I’m not a woman and I will have to prove my vagina?
Though the campaign was still in its early stages, Biden took the courageous step of exiting the race on July 21. In doing so, he accidentally endorsed Harris as his successor. They emerged from a time that was replete with struggle, rage and chaos. This endorsement was a notable extension of their political partnership thus far.
“Are you supporting us?” – Kamala Harris (reported by Harris)
Harris’s memoir gives us a look at the arcane and often baffling nature of the power relationship between the vice president and the president. She examines her life and the lessons learned with a disarming frankness that betrays both candor and confidence. The book depicts her amazing spirit and strength. It sheds light on the demons that haunted her through the arguably most divisive election in American history.
“OK. That’s really important. We need to know that.” – Kamala Harris (reported by Harris)