Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris and CNN’s Jake Tapper — and Mike Pence’s Fly — Honored as ‘Kings’ of 2020

Eric Baradat/AFP, Brendan Smialowski/AFP, Tasos Katopodis, Getty Images

A trio of political superstars were honored among Esquire Magazine’s Kings of 2020 feature: Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, CNN anchor Jake Tapper, and that fly that camped out on Vice President Mike Pence’s head.

The “Kings” each earned a distinct title in Esquire’s year-end feature that celebrates “the people, the moments and the menswear that’s made a better place of 2020.”

Vice President-elect Harris was included as one of “The Saviours,” and named “The King of the Hill” for her history-making election to the second-highest office in the land.

Citing the viral video moment when Harris shared news of their victory with President-elect Joe Biden, the magazine wrote “for so many watching, it felt personal to see a woman get the job she deserved over the man she had to remind not to speak over her. That she was able to accept the job in her running kit, and not a sexy-but-not-too-sexy, powerful-but-not-too-powerful outfit made it better still.”

Tapper, also listed as a “Saviour,” was named “The King of Truth” for his tireless anchoring of CNN’s Election Week coverage. The magazine noted “Tapper kept those nervously watching in Pennsylvania or Paris, LA or London, grounded and sane. In the days following the result Tapper and his co-hosts alternated between snatches of sleep and holding the Trump administration’s feet to the fire by showing the receipts against every wild claim being made.”

They also speculated that Tapper would likely cede the honor to Flyers mascot Gritty.

Then, there was The Fly. Listed as one of “The Icons,” Pence’s debate night visitor was named “The King of the Skies” and feted with a poetic ode that captured the admiration of the many observers who turned the pest into an immortal political punch line. To quote Esquire’s editors, “God speed!”

Read the whole feature from Esquire here.