Kamala Harris laid a wreath for “hero” John McCain while in Vietnam on Wednesday. She paid tribute at a memorial that was put up near the plane crash site of the former Navy fighter pilot before he was held as a prisoner of war by the communist Vietnamese for five years.
“Extraordinary American and hero,” Kamala Harris said. “I was honored and privileged to serve with him for a short time in the United States Senate. John McCain loved our country.”
“He was so courageous and really lived the life of a hero,” she said. “The sacrifices that he made that were on every scale imaginable. (He) loved our country and really always fought for the best of who we are. And it turns out today is the anniversary (of his death), so there we are. Thank you.”
But before she was vice president, Harris held her tongue while the Democratic Party and the left-wing media branded McCain a “racist” and a “sexist” for interrupting her during a Senate hearing. The 2017 Senate hearing pitted then-Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) against former Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
“When Ms. Harris then pressed Mr. Sessions on a Justice Department policy he cited as his rationale for not answering questions, Mr. McCain spoke up.
“Chairman,” Senator McCain said, “the witness should be allowed to answer the question.”
“Senators will allow the chair to control the hearing. Senator Harris, let him answer,” Senator Burr said.
“Several observers saw a case of sexism, and some suggested possible racial undertones,” the New York Times noted.
It wasn’t the only time that McCain had “interrupted” Harris, and was tarnished for the gesture.
“Last Wednesday, Ms. Harris was interrupted by Senator Richard M. Burr, Republican of North Carolina and the chairman of the committee, and Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, as she tried to question the deputy attorney general, Rod J. Rosenstein,” the Times noted.
While John McCain was being smeared in the press for being ‘racist’ and ‘sexist’ for preserving Senate decorum, Harris was notably tight-lipped.
“It was a simple question,” Harris said on Twitter. Then, she continued to press her case against Sessions on her Senate Twitter account, which for unknown reasons has been made a Vice President account.
It's unacceptable that Sessions – the top law enforcement official in the country – cannot name his legal basis for evading questions.
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) June 13, 2017
However, McCain’s ‘sexist’ interruption was being railed against in the press.
Why do Republican senators only interrupt when Kamala Harris is asking questions? A black woman can't question a white attorney general? pic.twitter.com/0zD59hVH7E
— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) June 13, 2017
Apparently, taking tough questions from a woman is unsettling to the poor AG's spirit. https://t.co/aQyuOSmiC0
— Joy-Ann (Pro-Democracy) Reid 😷 (@JoyAnnReid) June 13, 2017
Twice Kamala Harris is the ONLY senator being directed to let a witness answer, despite other sen's talking over them as well. #Mansplaining
— Rachel Levinson-Waldman (@RachelBLevinson) June 13, 2017
There were even petitions put out for Senator McCain and Senator Burr to ‘stop silencing‘ Kamala Harris.
“There is nothing more tired and played out than white men silencing Black women and claiming to feel threatened by them at the same time,” the petition said. “Sen. Kamala Harris already carries many burdens as the only Black woman in the Senate–being silenced by white men in public hearings should not be one of them.”
John McCain’s daughter, however, is not a fan of Vice President Harris, nor her mishandling of the border crisis. She remarked upon Harris’s trip to Guatemala in June, when she told potential migrants “don’t come” to the United States.
“Even some fellow Democrats think she is handling the crisis wrong,” Meghan McCain said.
“I thought she sounded like a moron when she was talking to Lester Holt,” McCain added, “Her nervous laugh is making me nervous that she doesn’t know what she’s doing.”
That’s strong words for a vice president who is suddenly going out of her way to speak up for the late Senator McCain.
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OPINION: This article contains commentary which reflects the author's opinion.