TIME magazine named Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as 2020’s Person of the Year in a glowing piece about the pair that also took shots at President Trump throughout, referring to him as a hurricane that “was tearing through America, ripping through institutions, chewing up norms and spitting them out.”
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are TIME's 2020 Person of the Year #TIMEPOY https://t.co/o97QNlSBrl pic.twitter.com/KuoBoebBN4
— TIME (@TIME) December 11, 2020
The author Charlotte Alter praised Biden’s approach to campaigning and said his appeal to voters came from the desire for a return to “decency, dignity, experience and competence.”
“To him, it wasn’t about fighting Trump with righteous vengeance, or probing any deeper rot that might have contributed to his ascent. Biden believed most voters simply wanted reconciliation after four years of combat,” Alter wrote.
“What I got most criticized for was, I said we had to unite America,” Biden told her. “I never came off that message.”
But being a “78-year-old white man,” Biden couldn’t do it all on his own. He had to also offer “generational change, a fresh perspective, and an embodiment of America’s diversity.” Enter Kamala Harris.
“Together, they offered restoration and renewal in a single ticket,” Alter states.
Twitter users offered a number of different takes.
TIME states: "Person of the Year is not an award — it is a marker. It is history as it’s written, whether good or bad."
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) December 11, 2020
It should be Chinese dictator Xi Jinping. This is his pandemic. He lied, covered it up, allowed it to escape plus about a million other horrible things. https://t.co/PVXxmoLcvZ
That’s weird. These other Presidents didn’t share their PERSON of the Year award with their VP. pic.twitter.com/Yq36tomLlp
— Boomieleaks (@Boomieleaks) December 11, 2020
I’m shocked. Just shocked. Who could have possibly seen this coming?? ???????? https://t.co/i0RvAbl6X6
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) December 11, 2020
And yet the word "person" is singular. They just can't bear to leave Kamala off. Get a food taster, Joe Biden. https://t.co/2iTjkJVRbK
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) December 11, 2020
While many criticized TIME for not choosing frontline workers, the magazine did pick Dr. Anthony Fauci and frontline health workers as "Guardians of the Year."
On the front line against COVID-19, the world’s health care workers displayed the best of humanity—selflessness, compassion, stamina, courage—while protecting as much of it as they could #TIMEPOY https://t.co/I5hFj5CBzm
— TIME (@TIME) December 11, 2020
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