Vice President Kamala Harris is being hailed as “the future of the Democratic Party,” according to a statement from the White House on Wednesday.
This declaration comes as leading Democrats and their allies position themselves to potentially replace President Biden as the party’s nominee if the 81-year-old president steps aside.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre referred to Harris as Biden’s political heir, even calling her “president” when discussing Biden’s earlier remark about being a “transitional” candidate. “One of the reasons he picked the vice president, President [sic] Kamala Harris, is because she is indeed the party’s future,” Jean-Pierre said during her regular briefing.
Harris, 59, faces significant potential competition for the Democratic presidential nomination. Possible contenders include California Governor Gavin Newsom, 56, and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, 52, especially following Biden’s poor performance in a debate against former President Donald Trump last week. Some leading Democrats worry that Harris, criticized for her public speaking, would increase Trump’s chances of winning.
A recent CNN poll showed Harris trailing Trump by two percentage points nationally, compared to Biden’s six-point deficit.
A Democratic detractor remarked, “She would cackle her way to the Oval [Office] if she could.”
Harris generally has lower favorability ratings in polls than Biden, averaging 38.7% versus Biden’s 39.8%, according to RealClearPolitics. It remains uncertain if Jean-Pierre’s statement reflects the president’s views. During a Wednesday call with campaign staff, Biden insisted that he and Harris continue as the Democratic ticket in the upcoming election.
“There is no one I’d rather be in this battle with than all of you,” Biden said on the call, despite the New York Times editorial board calling for him to step down and several House Democrats predicting his loss to Trump if he remains in the race. “Let’s link arms. Let’s get this done — you, me, the vice president, together,” Biden urged.
“We will not back down. We will follow our president’s lead. We will fight and win,” Harris reassured campaign staff.
Tensions between Biden and Harris have surfaced throughout his presidency. A former White House official told Reuters last year, “A point of tension in their relationship is that I don’t think that the president sees her as somebody who takes anything off of his plate” due to a “fear of messing up.”
Author Chris Whipple, in his book “The Fight of His Life,” released last year, described Biden considering Harris as a “work in progress.” The book also mentioned that Biden was frustrated in 2021 when he learned that the second gentleman, Douglas Emhoff, was complaining about tasks assigned to Harris, including addressing illegal migration and advocating for a federal voting rights law.
“Biden was annoyed,” the book states. “He hadn’t asked Harris to do anything he hadn’t done as vice president — and she’d begged him for the voting rights assignment.”
Despite a contentious primary where Harris criticized Biden for his stance on federally mandated desegregation through busing, Biden selected Harris, the first female and second non-white vice president, as his running mate. Harris famously told Biden during a 2019 debate, “That little girl was me!” After the discussion, First Lady Jill Biden reportedly was furious, suggesting Harris should “go f–k” herself.
As the 2024 election approaches, the Democratic Party’s future leadership remains a significant topic of discussion and speculation.
