Kamala Harris Announces She Will Run For President In 2020
Kamala Harris announced her 2020 presidential bid on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
We have yet another strong, qualified woman in the running for the Democratic nomination for the 2020 presidential election. Sen. Kamala Harris officially announced her intent to run today. She joins New York’s Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Hawaii’s Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who have committed to running already, as well as Elizabeth Warren, who has formed an exploratory committee to look into a bid for the presidency.
Basically, 2020 is all about badass women, and we are here. For. It.
“I love my country. I love my country,” Harris said in her announcement speech, which she made on Good Morning America. “This is a moment in time that I feel a sense of responsibility to stand up and fight for the best of who we are.”
If Harris were to win, not only would she be the first female president in our country’s history; she would also be the first woman of color to hold the highest office.
In her speech, which was made on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Harris gave a nod to the civil rights leader as someone who’s always inspired her politics.
“The thing about Dr. King that always inspires me is that he was aspirational. He was aspirational like our country is aspirational. We know that we’ve not yet reached those ideals. But our strength is that we fight to reach those ideals,” she said. “So today, the day we celebrate Dr. King, is a very special day for all of us as Americans and I’m honored to be able to make my announcement on the day we commemorate him.”
Harris also said she believed the American people are looking for a president with “leadership skills, experience and integrity,” and who will “fight on their behalf.”
“On all of those points, I feel very confident about my ability to lead,” she continued. “I feel very confident about my ability to listen and to work on behalf of the American public. The American public wants a fighter, and they want someone that is going to fight like heck for them and not fight based on self-interests. I’m prepared to do that.”
The announcement comes just a couple of weeks after Harris said in an interview that it was “too early” to say whether she was considering a presidential bid.
Harris has already made a name for herself as a progressive member of Congress who isn’t afraid to stand up to her opposition. She made that abundantly clear when she questioned Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearings. She went straight for the tough questions and didn’t back down, and it was great to see Kavanaugh squirm.
Of course, this is America, so Kamala Harris, as a woman of color, has an uphill battle ahead. But she’s tough and qualified and that’s more than we can say for certain people who have managed to win elections.
