Kamala Harris gives first speech since Joe Biden dropped out & endorsed her – but doesn’t mention bid to be president
KAMALA Harris has remained silent on her presidential bid as she addressed the public for the first time since Joe Biden ended his reelection campaign and endorsed her.
Harris accepted Biden‘s endorsement hours after the president shockingly ended his reelection bid following mounting pressure from Democrats and donors who called on him to step down.
“Our president Joe Biden wanted to be here today,” she told an event celebrating the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship teams from the 2023-2024 season, hosted at the White House.
“He’s feeling much better and recovering fast, and he looks forward to getting back on the road and I wanted to say a few words about our president.
“Joe Biden’s legacy of accomplishment over the past three years is unmatched in modern history.
“In one term, he has already surpassed the legacy of most presidents who have served two terms in office, and I first came to know President Biden through his son Beau.
“We worked together as Attorneys-general in our states, and back then Beau would often tell me stories about his dad.
“He would talk about the kind of father and the kind of man that Joe Biden is.
“The qualities that Beau revered in his father are the same qualities that I have seen every day in our president.
“His honesty, his integrity, his commitment to his faith and his family, his big heart, and his deep love of our country.”
Since Biden’s stunning announcement, a growing number of Democrats who it was believed were going to challenge Harris for the nomination have now backed her presidential bid.
Governors Gavin Newsom and Gretchen Whitmer, whose names were rumored to be on the list of potential presidential candidates, have endorsed Harris’ campaign.
West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, who was reportedly considering a possible reunion with Democrats for the open nomination, also opted out.
‘SHE IS NOT BETTER THAN HIM’
Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump ripped Biden and said while he won’t face the president on the ballot, he doesn’t think Harris is much of a challenge.
“I think she is not better than him,” Trump told CBS News.
“She could be far less competent, which is hard to believe. The policies, whether it’s him or her, wouldn’t be any different.
“She was in charge of the border. She was the border czar. She was the worst ever. The worst ever. We had the worst border ever, so that wouldn’t matter.”
In a pre-taped interview with Fox News’ Jesse Waters, Trump claimed Harris was campaigning for Biden to step down.
“She’s out there trying to get him to quit so she can run for president. She’s being laughed at all over the world,” Trump said, adding that he thought Harris was “incompetent.”
There is no evidence to suggest Harris wanted Biden to end his reelection campaign.
What happens next as Joe Biden drops out of the 2024 race?
President Biden has finally heeded calls to drop his bid for re-election, throwing the 2024 election into chaos. He has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris but naming a new Democratic nominee won't be a simple process. Here's what's next after Biden's stunning announcement.
Biden secured nearly 4,000 delegates by winning state caucuses and primaries earlier this year. He was set to officially be named the Democratic nominee at a virtual vote ahead of the Democratic National Convention, which begins on August 19.
Democratic party rules don’t allow Biden to simply pass his 3,896 delegates to Harris or another candidate.
Harris will now have to convince those nearly 4,000 delegates and 700 superdelegates to support her and name her nominee.
However, delegates are free agents who can choose to support whichever candidate they want – likely without input from voters at this stage since primaries and caucuses were already held.
All eyes are now on the previously planned virtual vote – where the Democratic party could choose a nominee before the DNC begins.
Biden’s endorsement of Harris will likely sway delegates and no one has publicly challenged her as a candidate – but delegates are not required to back her. Even if the virtual vote isn’t held, the party could still choose Harris or another candidate before the convention.
If Democrats don’t name their nominee before the DNC, it’ll be the first open and contested convention since 1968.
KAMALA STAYS SILENT ON PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN
Harris, 59, greeted the NCAA championship teams from the 2023-24 season at the White House on Monday as Democrats slowly begin to rally behind her presidential campaign.
The vice president began her speech by reflecting on Biden’s accomplishments as president before shifting back to the student-athletes in attendance.
“Our president, Joe Biden, wanted to be here today. He is feeling much better and recovering fast, and he looks forward to getting back on the road,” Harris said of the president, who is recovering from a Covid-19 diagnosis.
“And I want to say a few words about our president. Joe Biden’s legacy of accomplishments over the past three years is unmatched in modern history.
“In one term, he has already surpassed the legacy of most presidents who have served two terms in office.
“And I first came to know President Biden through his son Beau. We worked together as attorneys general in our states, and back then, Beau would often tell me stories about his dad.
“He would talk about the kind of father and the kind of man that Joe Biden is.”
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