Harris: Dems 'reckless' to defer to Biden on 2024 re-election bid
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In her new memoir, Kamala Harris calls Biden's re-election bid a personal risk with national consequences.
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Then-Democratic presidential nominee Kamal Harris speaks in Washington on November 6, 2024 (AP)
Former US Vice President Kamala Harris has sharply criticized senior Democrats for what she described as their “recklessness” in deferring to then-President Joe Biden on whether he should seek re-election in 2024. Her remarks, published in an excerpt from her upcoming memoir, mark the most candid critique yet from Biden’s former running mate following the Democratic Party’s defeat last year.
In the excerpt, published Wednesday in The Atlantic, Harris writes that while Biden was "capable" of serving, he often appeared fatigued, and that his closest advisors refused to confront the core question: should Biden have run for a second term at all?
“‘It’s Joe and Jill’s decision.’ We all said that, like a mantra, as if we’d all been hypnotized,” Harris wrote, referring to the former president and First Lady Jill Biden.
“Was it grace, or was it recklessness? In retrospect, I think it was recklessness. The stakes were simply too high. This wasn’t a choice that should have been left to an individual’s ego, an individual’s ambition. It should have been more than a personal decision.”
Turning point after 2024 defeat
The memoir, titled 107 Days, recounts Harris’ short-lived presidential campaign launched after Biden withdrew and endorsed her to lead the Democratic ticket. Until now, Harris had largely refrained from publicly criticizing Biden or the timing of his decision to leave the race.
However, she now points to his delayed withdrawal, which came only after a disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump, as a key factor that magnified voter concerns about Biden’s age, mental fitness, and ability to serve another term.
“At 81, Joe got tired. That’s when his age showed, in physical and verbal stumbles,” she writes, noting that his poor debate showing followed an exhausting travel schedule.
Loyalty, frustration
While Harris defends Biden’s integrity and capabilities, calling him “more knowledgeable, more compassionate, and better at exercising judgment than Donald Trump on his best day,” she also expresses frustration at how she was treated during and after her vice presidency.
She says she was often sidelined by Biden’s inner circle, struggled to gain positive recognition for her work, and lacked protection from partisan media attacks.
“Getting anything positive said about my work or any defense against untrue attacks was almost impossible,” she writes.
“When polls indicated that I was getting more popular, the people around him didn’t like the contrast that was emerging.”
Harris also noted that in Biden’s speech announcing his withdrawal from the race, her name wasn’t mentioned until nine minutes in, a detail she found telling. “That was it,” she wrote bluntly.
What’s next for Harris?
Harris, who previously ruled out a 2026 run for California governor, has remained vague about her political future. With questions swirling about her next move, observers are closely watching whether she will seek the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028.
