Disgruntled Joe Biden disappointed as Kamala Harris tries to distance from his record, report claims
President Joe Biden is disappointed with how quickly his influence is declining as Vice President Kamala Harris tries to overtake him, according to an NBC News report.
Biden has noticed that Harris does not often reference him in her campaign speeches, the report notes, citing six people familiar with his comments.
He was also saddened when Harris specifically distanced himself from him, insisting in the presidential debate that she was “obviously” not Joe Biden and offering a “new generation of leadership.”
A Harris campaign official tried to deflect rumors of an upset Biden by noting that the president has repeatedly told Harris to do whatever it takes to win.
Harris and Biden also had lunch together for the first time in a while on Thursday, an official confirmed, as they both headed to the White House to meet with Ukrainian President Voldymyr Zelensky.
US President Joe Biden is increasingly disappointed as his influence declines, a new report claims
However, Harris met separately with Zelensky at the White House and made separate comments from the president.
The White House rejected the report as ‘uninformed claims’ that were ‘the opposite of the truth’.
Meanwhile, sources tell NBC News, Biden appears saddened by his fading profile on the national stage and “left behind.”
Harris goes further and refers less to the president on the campaign trail.
βShe needs to become her own person,β a Harris campaign official told NBC News. “She has to do that to win.”
US President Joe Biden pauses as he speaks from the Oval Office
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris is campaigning without Joe Biden in Nevada
Biden’s appearance last week on ABC’s “The View” with the adoring hosts seemed like a bit of therapy for the president as they praised his political legacy.
But he also remained adamant that he could have defeated former President Donald Trump, despite the Democratic Party leadership pushing him out of the race.
βI never quite believed the claims that there was somehow overwhelming resistance to running again,β Biden said said during the job interview. “The fact is, my poll numbers always managed to beat this guy.”
The growing discomfort between the two candidates was only highlighted in a Saturday Night Live sketch in which an evasive Biden character was pushed aside by the Harris character before he could finish.
If Harris wins in November, Biden’s legacy will be vindicated for choosing Harris as his vice president in the first place and stepping aside at the right time. But if Trump emerges victorious, Biden may end up harboring grudges against Democratic Party leaders for the rest of his life.