When Kamala Harris arrived in Washington, DC four years ago as a new senator from California, she was offered a place on the senate intelligence committee, one of the most powerful and secretive bodies of the Congress. As the junior-most member of the committee, she sat at the far end of the row of senators during its meetings. But once the committee started investigating Russian involvement in the 2016 presidential elections, Kamala’s experience as a prosecutor brought her to the centre of the committee’s proceedings. Her incisive interrogation made Trump officials jittery. Attorney general Jeff Sessions, who had served in the senate for two decades, was so shaken after a round of questioning that he pleaded for mercy. “I'm not able to be rushed this fast,” he told Kamala during one of the hearings. “It makes me nervous.” She smiled warmly in response. But there was no respite for Sessions.
Kamala, who takes over as the 49th vice president of the United States on January 20, will be one of the most powerful occupants of that office. With Georgia, once the bastion of the southern confederates, electing two Democrats—a black preacher and a young Jew—on January 5, the senate is now split evenly between Democrats and Republicans. As the ex officio head of the senate, Kamala can break the tie on crucial votes, giving her a major say in critical appointments and an outsized influence on the senate’s legislative agenda. President Joe Biden will have to work more closely with her and be more accommodative to her priorities. She will not be the president's rubber stamp.
The audacious fighter
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