In Monday night’s debate with Bernie Sanders, Joe Biden said he would choose a woman as his vice president and appoint the “first black woman to the courts.”
“I Will Pick a Woman to be Vice President”
During the debate, Biden and Sanders were asked a question by Amy Langenfeld, a law professor from Chandler, Arizona, on the subject of women’s rights.
“Women are the canaries in the coal mine of the conservative agenda,” Langenfeld said. “Our access to health care is at risk from the Federalist Society’s remaking of the courts. Our lives are threatened by abusive partners’s access to guns. Women are disproportionately affected by bail requirements, Social Security cuts, and cuts to public education. How will your cabinet ensure the best advice on issues that affect women’s physical and financial health?”
Sanders answered first, claiming that his cabinet and administration, “will look like America. Last I heard, over half of the people in America are women, and that will be the representation in my cabinet and in my administration.”
Sanders proceeded to list a number of key policy areas in which he has “unlike Joe, consistently believed,” such as tackling abortion rights, the supposed “gender pay gap,” domestic violence, and the availability of “high quality” childcare.
“So I think if you look at my agenda… what you will find is it’s a very strong agenda, in fighting for the rights of women who are today under tremendous political assault by Trump and Republican governors all across this country,” Sanders argued, and noted that he had a consistent 100% vote rating from NARAL throughout his career.
Determined not to be outdone, Biden then committed to appointing “the first black woman to the courts,” if he was elected president.
“It’s required that they have representation now. It’s long overdue,” Biden said.
“Secondly, if I am elected president, my cabinet, my administration will look like the country, and I commit that I will, in fact, pick a woman to be vice president,” he continued, adding that there are “a number of women who are qualified to be president tomorrow.”
Moderator Dana Bash then asked Biden to confirm whether he would pick a woman as his vice president, to which he answered yes.
Sanders: “It’s Not Just About Nominating a Woman”
Bash proceeded to ask Sanders if he would make “that same commitment,” but Sanders dodged the question, instead asking Biden about his voting record on the Hyde Amendment, which prevents Medicaid funding being used for abortions.
“Everybody who has been in the Congress has voted for the Hyde Amendment at one point or another, because it was locked in other bills,” Biden responded, adding that if he won, he would “send immediately to the desk of the United States Congress… a codification of Roe v Wade amended by Casey because I think it is a woman’s right to choose, I think it’s a woman’s opportunity to be able to make that decision.”
Sanders was then asked again if he would choose a woman as his running mate.
“In all likelihood, I will,” Sanders said. “For me, it’s not just nominating a woman, it is making sure that we have a progressive woman, and there are progressive women out there. I have a very strong tendency to move in that direction.”
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Baseless Identity Politics!
With both candidates seemingly committing to a female running mate, it looks like we’ll have the first female vice presidential candidate for a major party since Palin stood on McCain’s ticket back in 2008! It’s interesting to note that Sanders emphasised the need to have someone on the ticket that he agreed with, and not just have a woman for optics purposes. Biden seemed very much to be playing into baseless identity politics with picking a woman as his vice president, rather than talking about any substantative policies, unlike Sanders.
No matter what you think of old Bernie, nobody can deny he knows what he stands for, and has been completely consistent. Sleepy Joe is simply pandering to whoever will listen to him – as the likely nominee, expect to see much more of this during the race itself.