I spent my 10th birthday with my grandparents in Eugene, Oregon, celebrating with U.S. Senator Wayne Morse. My grandfather was the president of the International Woodworkers of America, a labor union representing lumbermen, sawmill workers, and timber transportation workers throughout the United States and Canada. In this role, he met and became close friends with Senator Morse before I was born, so it was a happy surprise for both of them when I arrived on October 20th, sharing a birthday with Senator Morse.
Vice President Kamala Harris shares that same birthday. I don’t know Vice President Harris personally like I did Senator Morse, but I’m proud to share a birthday with her. My mail-in ballot arrived yesterday. I haven’t had time to fill it out yet, but when I do, with so much hope and joy, I will cast my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz to be the next President and Vice President of the United States. If Senator Morse or my very cool grandpa were still alive, they would do the same.
Vice President Harris is kind. She is respectful and gracious. She is strong and eloquent and doesn’t back down when challenged. She is a smart, capable leader, whose vision for our nation is positive and hopeful. I trust her to put the good of the people ahead of her own desires because that’s what patriots do. Their focus is outward, not self-centered.
My youngest child, Seth, shares a birthday on June 14th with another politician, ironically, the other candidate for president. I have apologized to Seth for this. I told him that, although I do prefer to wait for labor to begin naturally, if I’d had any idea back in the year 2000 the havoc this man would ultimately wreak on our country, I would have insisted on being induced a week early. Sorry, Seth!
As Election Day approaches, now only 16 days away, my feelings grow more intense, intensely excited by the prospect of a Harris/Walz administration. These last four years have been so refreshing under President Biden, as he got up each morning, dug in, and did his job. And he did it well, for sure the most effective president of my lifetime. Without any scandals or middle-of-the-night tweets attacking people he doesn’t like, he just slept. Like a normal person. Then got up the next day and went back to work. That leadership style sought to unite rather than divide us, and that will undoubtedly be the goal of Kamala Harris as well.
I’m also nervous. Really nervous. This election is far from decided. It promises to be another nail-biter, and we may not know the outcome when we go to bed the night of November 5th. Still, I know a few things for sure.
I’m reminded of the 1992 election. President George W. Bush (senior), the incumbent, was defeated by Bill Clinton. Was that the outcome President Bush desired? Of course not! I’ll bet it was one of the saddest, most disappointing nights of his life. But you know what? You know what he did? When it became clear he had lost, President Bush made that phone call, the one honorable leaders have been making for decades. He called Bill Clinton on the phone to congratulate him on his victory and to wish him well. Then, on his last day in the White House, he left a handwritten letter to President Clinton on his desk in the Oval Office. That letter ended with the words, “I’m rooting hard for you!” Because he was! Patriots always put the good of the country over their own selfish desires.
I did not support President Bush (either of them, actually). Their visions for the nation were far different from mine. I voted for their opponents in every single election they were part of. But I surely respect President Bush (senior) for accepting defeat with honor and thereby ensuring a peaceful and respectful transfer of power.
You can be sure that if tragedy happens and Vice President Harris loses the election, she will make that phone call. She will make it. Because decency and democracy and the peaceful transfer of power are part of her core values, non-partisan values that make our nation what it is. She will put those values ahead of her ego, her selfishness, and her disappointment. And clearly, she will not stage an insurrection to attack and attempt to overthrow the Capitol just two months later. She will not stand by watching the chaos on TV, as her armed supporters violently attack police officers. Of that, you can be sure.
If she is elected, not everything will go as she hopes. It never does, and that’s actually a good thing because a balance of power is central to our democracy (though nothing would please me more than to deliver her a trifecta win). Regardless, I believe she will do all she can to restore women’s access to life-saving healthcare and to resurrect the bipartisan border bill that Trump had his minions shut down.
Even more importantly, she will behave with decency and honor, reflecting the values critical for a person who holds the highest office in the land. She is not a convicted felon. She is not a rapist. She does not mock the disabled or make up ridiculous stories about Haitian refugees eating pets! She also isn’t delusional. She never decides to stop answering questions at rallies, in favor of standing up on the stage, swaying back and forth for half an hour, while “Ave Maria” plays in the background.
So Happy Birthday, Vice President Harris! I’m honored to share this day with you. I believe your birthday wish is the same as mine. Let’s make it happen Nov. 5th.
