Even Republicans are tired of the internet’s incessant scrutiny of Vice President Kamala Harris as a former Republican representative, Adam Kinzinger, tells critics to just “shut up.”
As the White House prepares for the upcoming transition of power, reports surfaced that Harris allegedly declined to invite Vice President-elect J. D. Vance and his wife, Usha Vance, for a courtesy visit to the vice president’s residence. The extension of such an invitation is tradition, although it was first broken by the Trump administration in 2020. On January 20th, the Vance family will move into a mansion on the Naval Observatory grounds, the designated residence for vice presidents since the 1970s. Although the family was not offered a tour or meeting prior to move-in, CBS reported that the Vances spoke with Douglas Emhoff and Navy aides to ensure the accommodation was suitable for Vance’s three young children.
Harris hasn’t publicly commented on the lack of an invitation. However, it’s hardly surprising, considering Donald Trump and Vance have repeatedly confirmed that they are incapable of offering her basic respect. Throughout their campaign, they called her everything from a “childless cat lady” to ableist slurs. She has fulfilled her constitutional duties to certify the election results and oversee a peaceful transfer of power, and that is truly all that’s required of her. She has no obligation to extend courtesies to people who wouldn’t do the same for her. Of course, all the MAGAs had something to say about Harris’ decision. Fortunately, Kinzinger quickly shut them down.
Adam Kinzinger tells hypocritical MAGAs to shut up
As soon as reports of Harris’ lack of invitation to Vance broke, MAGA pounced on the story. They filled X with sarcastic and cruel comments, such as “classy,” “So much for Peaceful Transition of Power,” and “sore loser.” Surprisingly, it was a Republican who threw cold water on the rising outrage. In response to a post by Tom Fitton sarcastically calling Harris “classy,” Kinzinger pointed out MAGA’s hypocrisy, given that Harris and Biden didn’t receive such an invitation from the Trump administration when they were elected. He wrote, “Your dude didn’t invite Biden in 2020 and didn’t even do a transition so honestly shut up.”
It’s true that Harris did not receive the courtesy tour or sit down with the Pences before moving into the White House in 2020. Sources dispute whether Harris was extended the invitation or not. Pence reportedly sent the invite but had to do so discreetly because Donald Trump refused to cooperate with the transition of power. Between Trump’s resistance and the attack on the Capitol, Harris likely didn’t even have the option to accept the alleged invite due to safety concerns. Then, of course, there’s the fact that staging an insurrection to try to prevent the transition of power is about as classless as one can possibly get. Who would even have the audacity to criticize the lack of a courtesy invitation after the Trump administration greeted the Biden administration with a brutal attack on the Capitol?
Those outside of MAGA were likely relieved to learn that Harris chose to forego the invitation. She has, rightfully, been praised for carrying out her constitutional duties with the utmost dignity and professionalism and for refraining from sowing even the tiniest seeds of doubt in the electoral system. However, professionalism and class don’t mean that you allow someone to walk all over you. Inviting a man into her home who has called her “trash,” relentlessly mocked her, and went as far as to criticize her family decisions honestly would’ve set a very poor example for the countless women who look up to Harris. By refusing to allow that man into her home, Harris is demonstrating to women all over the world that they can hold the highest-ranking positions in the country and fulfill their duties without ever having to sacrifice their self-dignity and pride by extending courtesy to a man who hasn’t earned it.
Published: Jan 14, 2025 05:40 pm