Harris shines as Pence plays Trump-lite: Three top takeaways from historic Vice Presidential debate

It was inspirational to see Kamala Harris become the first woman of color to participate in a Vice Presidential debate on Wednesday.

Our three takeaways…

1. Harris won the night with a sharp indictment of the Trump/Pence fumbling of the Covid-19 response.

Harris called the Trump administration’s handling of the pandemic “the greatest failure of any presidential administration in the history of our country” and noted that Trump and Pence, who is the head of the White House Coronavirus Task Force “still don’t have a plan” to get it under control. Pence tried to counter, but with plexiglass sheets and an empty arena reminding everyone of the situation, his arguments fell flat.

2. Pence obfuscated his views on abortion because he knows the majority of Americans support pro-choice policies.

When asked if his home state of Indiana should ban abortion if Roe v. Wade was overturned, Pence deflected, and didn’t address the question. Pence is staunchly anti-choice, but perhaps he knew that 79% of Americans think abortion should be legal in at least some circumstances.

3. Pence claims systemic racism doesn’t exist.

Pence mocked Harris and Joe Biden for saying America is systemically racist, calling this “a great insult” to law enforcement. And when Harris brought up Trump’s failure to condemn white supremacy, Pence replied with “President Trump has Jewish grandchildren,” which of course, is not a guarantee against antisemitism or racism.

Our favorite moment: “Mr. Vice President, I’m speaking.”