A handshake or a one-two-second conversation between Kamala Harris, the vice president of the United States of America, and the husband of Deb Fischer, a Republican senator from Nebraska (Bruce Fischer), during the swearing-in, has led to a social media brawl. This uncertain activity was videotaped, received significant attention on the Web, and awakened the interest of liberal and conservative critics.
The Incident at the Ceremony
Biden’s Vice President during the swearing-in ceremony simply took the hand of Senator Bruce Fischer and congratulated her on her work. She then proceeded to Senator Fischer; shaking Bruce Fischer’s hand to also congratulate him. However, he uttered verbally and greeted her with ‘’ thank you’’ but did not hold her hand. Harris looked like a specimen momentarily stunned, her eyebrows shot up then she did not pursue the line of thought.
Online Reactions
The video quickly gained traction after being posted by liberal commentators, who interpreted the exchange as a deliberate snub by Mr. Fischer. They gave certain allegations that propelled more discussions and criticisms targeted at the senator’s family.
But it wasn’t long before conservative voices added more to the story in question with the other side of the story. New images from a different perspective showed that Bruce Fischer was carrying a cane, which could explain why he did not greet Kamala Harris with a handshake. This led to conservatives claiming the video did more harm than good to girls by only using a part of the video to pass its message across.
Calls for Understanding
Several others urged compassion, saying that swearing-in exercises entail much stretching for all participants, especially those who have to rely on a walking stick. They cringed at those who had made decisions just from watching a split-second video. As of Monday evening, Senator Bruce Fischer has not commented on the event or the viral responses on the social media pages. While the video went viral, she and her team did not engage on the issue, and the experience’s meanings were left to social discourse to explain. The interaction is a good lesson of how moments can easily be twisted on social platforms, especially when mostly no context is given.
