Former Democratic Senator turned MSNBC political analyst Claire McCaskill twice wiped away tears while reacting live on-air to Kamala Harris‘ concession speech Wednesday.
“I’m so proud,” McCaskill said, her voice breaking, when asked for her thoughts by host Nicolle Wallace during Deadline: White House.
Composing herself, she continues: “I’m so proud of her. I don’t think people realize how hard it is to get to where she was. As a woman, getting elected DA, it’s not easy guys.”
McCaskill, who represented Missouri from 2007 to 2019, outlined her admiration for Harris’s political career and that the vice president had been left in the “most difficult situation in the world” after becoming the Democratic candidate after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race in July.
“People don’t trust women to be in charge of making decisions about life and death and crime and being frankly a supervisor in some ways over police,” McCaskill said. “Her fighting through the primary thicket of California politics to become Attorney General, really hard. I mean, this is really hard stuff.”
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“For her to be selected as Vice President after what I think she would tell you was a very disappointing presidential race, where I think she kind of lost her footing…” McCaskill then removed her spectacles to wipe away tears as producers cut to a close-up.
“…and was listening too much to consultants, frankly. It wasn’t… it didn’t really exude who she was.
“And then to be vice president and to step into the most difficult situation in the world where she had to be completely loyal to Joe Biden and respectful of the fact that he had chosen her, but yet maneuver in this situation. I mean, such political skill, it is just inspiring. People who don’t understand what she had to do to get to this moment.”
McCaskill’s voice began to quiver and her eyes become teary as she concluded: “I’m just very proud of her,” again removing her glasses to wipe her eyes.
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Harris delivered he concession speech to dejected supporters on the campus of Howard University, her alma mater, late Wednesday afternoon while vowing to keep fighting against a “dark time” for some Americans.
The Associated Press has called the races in 48 states at time of writing, giving Trump 295 Electoral College votes, passing the 270 required to win the White House. Nevada and Arizona have not been called, but Trump is leading in both. Trump is also currently on track to win the popular vote.
Harris served as District Attorney of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011, as California Attorney General from 2011 to 2017, and served four years of a term as a U.S. Senator from California before winning the 2020 election as Vice President to Joe Biden.