WaPo's very important Real Journalism™ might help shed some light on why Kamala Harris hasn't yet tackled the border crisis

Where’s Kamala Harris? Last time we checked, the vice president was too busy scouting out the best snacks in Chicago to tackle the border crisis. At least that’s what Jen Psaki told us.

But if you had difficulty believing Psaki’s excuse, here’s a much better one: “The new vice president is a crocheter.”

No, really:

The vice president — and her hobby — have inspired a crocheted mural, a crocheted doll, and a burgundy hand-dyed yarn. https://t.co/7xh6evFoqH

— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) April 13, 2021

More from this very important real news article:

“I was raised by a mother who said ‘I am not going to let you sit in front of that television doing nothing.’ And so I have crocheted more afghans than I can tell you,” Harris said while visiting the store. “And our daughter is a knitter.”

At the shop, Harris found out about a special hand-dyed yarn named in her honor (Observatory Circle) from Neighborhood Fiber Co., a woman-owned Baltimore-based business. Five days later, on International Women’s Day, a crocheted mural of Harris’s likeness and the words “I’m Speaking” was installed at the Wharf. And with all the Googling of “Kamala Harris and crochet” there was a spike at craftyiscool.com of online sales for a pattern to crochet a Harris doll in the Japanese style of amigurumi. (Translated from the Japanese, amigurumi means little knitted toy, says Allison Hoffman who owns the Austin business, “but I tell people that I crochet small dolls and cute toys out of yarn.”)

The cool factor of crocheting was on the upswing already, as hipsters have helped the hobby shed its image of being the stuff of old ladies. During the pandemic, more people have picked up DIY crafts such as quilting and knitting for comfort and to pass the time. Knitters are a much larger group, but the global crochet community has been growing as artsy crocheters keep posting their rugs, bralettes, sanitizer-bottle covers and cardis on social media. And the association of Harris with crocheting is huge. “Knowing that the vice president is a crocheter gives me street cred,” says Hoffman, who sells patterns for Amanda Gorman and Bernie Sanders dolls, among others. “Now I can say that I am doing what Kamala Harris does.”