Kamala Harris' Potty Mouth Has Critics Clutching Their Pearls
Women wore pearls to celebrate Kamala Harris becoming America's first female vice president, and she also had her haters running for their jewelry boxes over a video that went viral. Since her swearing-in, her critics have reacted to a lot of her behavior with some serious pearl-clutching — Harris was even criticized for her 2022 State of the Union ensemble — so her swearing during an event was met with predictable outrage.
At the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies Legislative Leadership Summit, comedian Jimmy O. Yang opened up a dialogue with Harris about her being the first VP with Asian heritage (via CSPAN). Harris, whose mother is Indian, offered some advice for young people of Asian descent who want to make their mark on a world where they might get overlooked because of the way they look. "We have to know that sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open. Sometimes they won't," she said. "And then you need to kick that f***ing door down." She laughed before adding, "Excuse my language." Harris was basically advising the young people in the audience to be strong and stand up for themselves, and she told them that they could do so knowing that they had the support of the rest of their community.
Yang told Harris that he thought her door-busting line would make a great T-shirt slogan, but some social media users were appalled by Harris' use of profanity.
Some critics thought the F-bomb was an act of desperation
On X, formerly known as Twitter, some netizens suggested that Kamala Harris dropped the F-bomb because she believed it would resonate with young voters. "Surprised to see her get so foul. This is how you know they're struggling with the youth vote," wrote conservative podcast host Joey Mannarino. There was also a lot of pearl-clutching from people who found her use of potty language offensive. "Crude and unprofessional. Reeks of desperation," read one tweet. "This is not Vice President behavior — this is trashy," complained reporter Anthony Hughes.
Some users pointed out that any members of the MAGA crowd who were criticizing Harris were being just a tad hypocritical, as Donald Trump has been known to drop a dirty word or two. One person reminded Trump supporters of that infamous hot-mic moment that caused a stir, calling them out for losing their minds over a metaphor and ignoring Trump's boast that he can "grab 'em by the p***y" during a conversation about how he views women.
If Harris wanted her words to hit home with Trump fans, perhaps she needed to deliver them with a scowl instead of a smile. "Holy S***: A Brief History of Swearing" author Melissa Mohr told the New York Times, "We tend to believe people when they swear, because we interpret these words as a sign of strong emotions. In [Trump's] case, the emotion is often powerful anger, which his supporters seem to love."
Joe Biden's comments about Kamala Harris caused a MAGA meltdown
Joe Biden had some high praise for his Veep at the Reception for Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, which was held the same day as the APAICS Summit. When introducing himself to the crowd, he said, "My name's Joe Biden, I work for Kamala Harris" (via CSPAN). Some users on X did not take this remark as the joke that it was clearly intended to be. It had one conspiracy theorist suggesting that Biden might not be in the Oval Office for long if he gets re-elected. "Is he setting the table for Kamala to step in?" they asked. Another person who seemingly thought it was a gotcha! moment wrote, "The VP is supposed to work for and on behalf of the POTUS. He just admitted he's not in charge."
In the past, Harris has had to deny rumors that she doesn't have a great relationship with Biden because she feels underappreciated. At the reception, Biden made it clear that his second-in-command's talents have not gone unnoticed when he said, "I asked her to be my vice president because I knew I needed somebody smarter than me." Some Trump supporters found this lighthearted compliment downright terrifying. "God help us all," read one tweet. "He's so far gone, it's embarrassing to this nation," another person commented. This after Donald Trump called Hannibal Lecter — a fictitious, cannibalistic serial killer — a "wonderful man," per The Hill.