Several potential vice-presidential picks have made impressive showings of late, helping to lift their prospects to be Biden’s running mate. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has effectively stood up to President Trump while showing her levelheadedness and executive skills in managing the coronavirus crisis. (Her approval rating far exceeds Trump’s in the key swing state.) Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota has also been visible — pushing her bill to support mail-in voting, speaking from the heart about her husband’s bout with coronavirus and joining Biden on his podcast.

However, Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) has provided the most effective audition — a series of them — in one TV appearance after another, showing she has grown since her campaign. Criticized during the campaign for being fuzzier on policy than her competitors, she has stepped into the role of coronavirus policy maven, advocating her $5 billion VoteSafe Act (supporting not only to voting by mail but safer, easier access for in-person voting), riding herd on the Bureau of Prisons for its failure to adequately address outbreaks among the incarcerated, and urging an alternative means of getting stimulus money to Americans without direct deposit (load debit cards already used for food stamps). She has made the case persuasively that previously unaddressed problems (e.g., access to broadband, paid sick leave) are now widely seen as essential in the era of distance learning and sheltering in place. She speaks with authority about the unequal outcomes and treatment in the pandemic for disadvantaged groups.

AD

AD

To be certain, she still talks emphatically about the individual experiences of her constituents and wields a sharp stiletto in confronting Trump’s malfeasance:

The coronavirus pandemic, as Harris pointed out, is a test for all politicians. Do they delve into the nitty-gritty details of policy and implementation problems, communicate clearly with reliable data, assiduously bring the crisis back to human terms and to the most vulnerable Americans, avoid making the perfect the enemy of the good (e.g., voting for the first Cares Act despite its inadequacies) and eviscerating Trump without appearing to disrespect the office? Harris has hit the mark on all these.

Biden says he wants someone capable of stepping into the presidency, someone who is simpatico with him and fills in areas with experiences and viewpoints he might not have. Again, Harris checks the box on all these. There is another unstated factor: Given Biden’s age and the potential that he might not serve two terms, who does he want to present as the face of the Democrats’ future, of the next generation of leaders to whom Biden can pass the baton? If generating excitement not only about his campaign but about the potential of the next president being an African American female is the goal, he likely won’t find a better choice.