Advertisement
President Joe Biden gave praise to his potential understudy California Governor Gavin Newsom at the APEC summit on Wednesday, praising his abilities and saying he has what it takes to do his own job.
‘I want to thank him. He’s been a great governor, man,” Biden told the assembled Asia-Pacific leaders after Newsom warmed up the crowd with lively and flowing remarks praising his state’s diversity. “In fact, he can be anything he wants — he could get the job I’m looking for,” Biden said during his own reelection campaign.
Newsom has become a top surrogate for Biden’s campaign, helping him raise an estimated $3 million during a fundraiser in San Francisco on Tuesday evening. The president made the comments on Wednesday at the APEC meeting, where the president hosted a star-studded event in the evening that saw the 80-year-old take the stage with rocker Gwen Stefani.
Newsom was previously mentioned as a potential primary challenger to Biden, though the campaign now sees him as a valuable asset in helping deliver the party’s message even as Biden struggles to get his approval ratings above 40 percent. Biden’s political compliments to Newsom came on a day when he said Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who was in attendance, was a “dictator.”
The 80-year-old Biden is pressing ahead with his presidential campaign even as some top Democratic officials have raised alarms about his poor performance in national polls and some surveys show him in swing states, trailing slightly behind former President Donald Trump, who faces multiple fighters. charges.
Biden has $71 million in his campaign coffers and decades of experience, but some Democrats think they could do better with a younger standard-bearer who is not so defined. Polls show widespread concerns about his handling of the economy, even as inflation falls and unemployment remains at record lows.
Newsom put some of his acquired skills on display Wednesday evening, looking sharp in his suit and smiling as he warmly welcomed the leaders and hailed California as a “dream” and a “coming attraction.” His comments came shortly before Vice President Harris also warmed up the crowd, smiling and carrying her own political resume, which includes San Francisco district attorneys and state attorney general.
She pointed to four foreign trips to Asia as vice president at a conference aimed at strengthening ties in the Indo-Pacific. “As Vice President, I have traveled to Indian Ocean countries at least four times in recent years. I visited American sailors deployed to Japan and American soldiers at the Korean DMZ,” Harris said. “And I’ve spent time here today with many of the world’s leaders at bilateral meetings and multilateral summits, including at APEC, where I represented the United States in Bangkok last year,” she said at an event where Newsom hosted his own bilateral meeting with Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Biden’s comments came after he held high-stakes meetings with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, touching on charged topics from Taiwan to the Middle East. It came on the second day of a trip that included a warm welcome from Newsom on the tarmac of San Francisco International Airport.
During the evening event, Biden was introduced by Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, one of several prominent California athletes who participated in a video with San Francisco Mayor London Breed. Visiting leaders were also treated to a performance by Stefani, who serenaded them with “Don’t Speak” and “Hollaback Girl.”
Want more stories like this from the Daily Mail? Visit our profile page here and hit the follow button above for more news you need.