Kamala Harris Just Became The First Acting Female President
There's certainly no doubt that Kamala Harris is a remarkable person whose political career has been filled with notable accomplishments. Among other incredible successes and feats over the years, she stepped into one of the most powerful roles in America when she became the Vice President of the United States, the first woman of color to do so, per ABC News. However, she's surely hoping that her job will help pave the way for others to follow her lead.
Indeed, according to the White House, Harris explained back in January 2019, "My mother [research scientist and role model Shyamala Gopalan] would look at me and she'd say, 'Kamala, you may be the first to do many things, but make sure you are not the last.'" It definitely seems like Harris has taken that to heart.
Now, Harris has made history again as the first acting female president. However, it's due to a reason that you might not expect, as well as one that a former president apparently wouldn't admit to doing.
Kamala Harris was acting president for a reason Trump might have hidden
On November 19, President Joe Biden did something that countless others have done: he got a routine colonoscopy, according to CNN. During the procedure, he was put under anesthesia, leaving him temporarily unable to lead the country. During that time, Vice President Kamala Harris took over as the acting president, making her the first woman to take on the role.
It doesn't seem like a lot was expected to happen during the brief transfer of power, with White House press secretary Jen Psaki telling reporters that "the Vice President will work from her office in the West Wing during this time," per The New York Times.
The fact that Harris was made the first female acting president (even temporarily) is obviously a big deal, even though it was sparked by something that's not a big deal at all. In fact, because having a colonoscopy is so common, it's definitely not something that people should feel like they have to hide. However, that's apparently just what Donald Trump did when he was president. Although it was never confirmed, CNN notes that Trump likely didn't want people to joke about the situation. He also supposedly didn't want to transfer power to his vice president, Mike Pence, even for a short period. Although, as the Los Angeles Times notes, that wouldn't be the only time he ignored how things are done when it comes to the transfer of power.