Yahoo Finance Doug Emhoff Marvels at His 'Surreal' Life as Second Gentleman - and When It All Started to Sink In
Doug Emhoff can pinpoint the exact moment the magnitude of his new life, and of his new role as second gentleman of the United States, first sunk in: during the Jan. 19 memorial for those who lost their lives to COVID-19.
"The COVID memorial on the Lincoln Steps, and the reflecting pond. That's when it really hit me: Oh my goodness, this is really happening. The cameras, and the Secret Service. And you walk out and there's soon-to-be president Biden and the first lady," Emhoff, 56, told NBC's chief White House correspondent, Peter Alexander, in an interview that aired Thursday on Today.
Even months later, Emhoff said the fact that he's now married to the vice president is still "a little surreal."
He added that there are light moments, in which he and wife Kamala Harris will stop to absorb the moment.
"Every minute of every day," Emhoff said on Today, when asked if he ever stops to think about how he got to this point. "And sometimes she and I will look at each other and just - I'll say, 'You're the vice president of the United States,' and she'll say, 'You're the second gentleman of the United States.' "
As the first man to ever hold that title, Emhoff is making history, having previously worked as a well-known entertainment attorney in Los Angeles.
He left his firm ahead of the inauguration. In December, he announced he was joining Georgetown University Law Center to teach a course for the spring semester titled "Entertainment Law Disputes."
ERIC BARADAT/AFP via Getty Images Center, from left: Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff pose for a picture with healthcare workers as they delivered baskets of cookies on Feb. 13.
Harris is a history-maker as well, as the first Black person and first person of Indian descent to be elected vice president of the United States.
Such a high-profile political career, Emhoff said on Today, comes with its share of criticism.
"No one wants to see anyone they love attacked or criticized but that's part of what she signed up for in this life of public service," he said. "It's part of the territory, and for her - if you could see what I see, behind the scenes - she's just focused on the work, working hard and getting it done for the American people."
Asked if he thinks Harris is treated differently in her role because she is a woman of color, Emhoff said, "Probably - but, so what?"
He continued: "She has faced challenges as a ground-breaker her whole career. I think she said at times, when you're breaking barriers, there's breaking involved. And breaking means you might get cut sometimes. But that's okay, it's worth it. Because she's leaving a path for others."
Indeed, as she told PEOPLE in 2019: "That's where I derive eternal optimism is the ability of the American people: to be able to see what can be, even if they've never seen it before."
Emhoff has spoken openly about what his role as second gentleman means in terms of traditional ideals associated with masculinity, explaining in a recent conversation with actor and filmmaker Justin Baldoni - filmed as part of the 2021 Makers Conference - that his comfort hinges largely on his own confidence.
"This whole thing about manliness and what it means to be a man ... are just so wrong. I mean, what is strength?" he told Baldoni. "To me it's strong to show someone you love them and show someone you will protect them and provide for them. And it's okay to show it. But that doesn't mean you're weak. I think it means you're strong. You don't have to talk tough to be tough."
He echoed that sentiment on Today this week, telling Alexander, "Men have to step up and step up for the people that they love and actually show it. It's manly to love and care about others."
And while he's found a new focus in Washington, D.C., highlighting food insecurity in local communities and encouraging Americans to get the COVID-19 vaccine, Emhoff insists that he and his wife aren't thinking too far into the future.
According to his conversation on Today, he has spent "zero seconds" talking to his wife about her own potential run for president one day, saying the two are solely focused "on the task at hand."
