Nancy Pelosi concedes Biden may DROP OUT of 2024 race – then smirks, laughs and dodges question when asked if Kamala Harris should run for VP
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi admitted that Joe Biden may drop out of the 2024 race — and grinned, laughed and dodged the question when asked if she thinks Kamala Harris should run to be re-elected as vice president.
Pelosi expressed concern for the president and also gave an evasive answer when asked whether his career would continue into 2024 and beyond.
When asked if she thought “there’s a chance Biden doesn’t run,” Pelosi gave a less definitive answer: “I hope not, I hope not.”
The 80-year-old president – the oldest ever elected – has faced increasing questions about his cognitive abilities – with mounting criticism coming from his own party.
Pelosi, 83, also gave a classic non-answer to Anderson Cooper on his show Wednesday night when asked if Harris was “the best running mate for this president.”
She replied, “He thinks so, and that’s what matters. She is very politically astute. I don’t think people give her enough credit. Her values align with the president’s values. Why would she be vice president if she wasn’t?’
Pushed again by Cooper – Pelosi still dodged the question, but began smiling, giggling and even raising her eyes conspiratorially as she spoke. The CNN star was off camera at the time and it is unclear if he did anything to amuse her.
With a smile, Pelosi said, “She is the vice president of the United States. People say to me: why doesn’t she do this or that? I say because she’s the vice president. That’s the job description. You don’t do that much.’
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi seemed to hedge a bit when asked if she thought Vice President Kamala Harris should be on the ticket in 2024, saying only that President Biden “thinks that way and that’s what matters’
Ultimately, Pelosi had some praise for Harris’ job performance.
“You know, you are a source of strength, inspiration, intellectual resource and all the rest, and I think she has represented our country very well at home and abroad.”
Pelosi also laughed off a column by David Ignatius at Jeff Bezos’ company WashingtonPost that challenged both Harris and her boss, writing: “President Biden should not run again in 2024.”
Ignatius largely praises Biden’s first years as president, claiming the Democrat has “ruled from the center” and done a good job on foreign policy by supporting Ukraine.
However, he says that not only Biden, but also Vice President Kamala Harris, should avoid a run for office in 2024.
‘It’s painful to say that, given my admiration for much of what they have achieved. But if he and Harris campaign together in 2024, I think Biden risks undoing his greatest achievement — stopping Trump.”
He cited disastrous polling for Biden in terms of approval rating and public opinion of his age.
Pelosi derided Ignatius’ criticism as just one vote and responded to previous criticism Ignatius had made about her trip to Taiwan.
Pelosi, 83, still Speaker Emerita and also running for re-election next year, was asked if Harris (pictured) was the right person to work with Biden again as Harris has been asked if she is capable of replacing him
“He thinks so, and that’s what matters,” Pelosi said. ‘She is very politically astute. I don’t think people give her enough credit.”
The New York Times and the Washington Post published op-eds on Wednesday labeling 80-year-old President Joe Biden as too old to run for re-election in 2024. Pelosi laughed off their criticism.
‘So yes? That’s one. He also said not to run because he allowed me to go to Taiwan. No one allows me to do anything. It wasn’t David Ignatius’ fault.’
Pelosi praised the president when asked if he was the best person for the 2024 Democratic nomination.
‘I think so. Yes. President Biden has – he has a lot of experience and wisdom. As you know, he’s been at this for a long time, as a senator, vice president and now as president. He has a vision for our country that is about fairness and justice and addressing the kitchen table problems of America’s working families.”
She admitted that there may be some concerns among Democrats about his age, but everyone is in favor of him. Overwhelmingly, everyone is for him.
For Harris — whose criticism Pelosi did not directly address — he cited “the simple fact that she has failed to gain traction in the country or even within her own party.”
He even suggested that Biden replace Harris on the ticket with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass or Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
“Right now, there is no clear alternative to Biden – no glaringly obvious replacement waiting in the wings. That could be the deciding factor for Biden, that there apparently is no one else. But perhaps he will trust that democracy will discover new leadership ‘in the arena’.
Harris emphasized last week that she was prepared to “take over” for President Joe Biden if the 80-year-old became ill and could no longer run the country.
The vice president outlined the worst-case scenario, but emphasized that Biden is doing well and can continue to serve a second term until he is 86.
Harris, who has suffered from poor approval ratings, defended the president’s age during an Associated Press interview at the ASEAN summit in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The AP’s Chris Megerian pointed out last week’s AP-NORC poll It showed that 77 percent of Americans, including 69 percent of Democrats, believe Biden is too old to run for re-election.
Vice President Kamala Harris emphasized Wednesday that she was ready to take power from President Joe Biden, but assured Americans that he could serve as president until he is 86.
This is evident from a Wall Street Journal poll on Monday had similar findings: 73 percent of voters said Biden is too old to run again, including two-thirds of Democrats.
Harris dismissed the concerns and said Biden was prepared to serve as president until January 2025.
“Let me first say that our president has been an extraordinary leader who has accomplished things that previous presidents hoped, dreamed and promised they would do but did not,” she said.
“So yes, I see him every day, a significant amount of time we spend together is in the Oval Office where I see his ability to understand problems and weave through complex issues in a way that no one else can, to make smart and important decisions on behalf of the American people have played out,” Harris continued.
“And so I will say to you that ultimately I think the American people want to know that their president is getting results — and that Joe Biden is getting results,” the vice president added.
Harris also responded affirmatively when Megerian asked if she was willing to run for president.
“Yes,” she said.