Vice President Kamala Harris needed to get to the US Senate to break a tie. But first she had to avoid causing a traffic jam.
WASHINGTON—
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Wednesday that his caucus “has been deeply grateful” for Harris’ “constant schedule juggling.” A dozen nominees would not have been confirmed without her vote. She also helped nudge the American Rescue Plan, a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief measure, and the Inflation Reduction Act, the centerpiece of Biden’s domestic agenda, over the finish line.
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said, “Any time we were here, she had to be ready, because even things that might have seemed noncontroversial, appointments and stuff, could deadlock.” Harris was “never completely free to make other plans,” he said. The nomination unexpectedly stalled without Harris available to break a tie, so Democrats tried again in September. They were successful, and Harris wasn’t even needed as a tiebreaker.
After all, the vice presidency can be a political springboard, and remaining tethered to Senate procedure is not usually an ambitious leader’s idea of a plum assignment. Sometimes they even voted against the president’s interests. In 1832, when Jackson chose Van Buren to be ambassador to Great Britain, Calhoun ensured the nomination failed by casting a tiebreaking vote against him.
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