Vice President Kamala Harris stressed on Wednesday that she was willing to take over from President Joe Biden if the 80-year-old fell ill and could no longer run the country.
The vice president outlined the worst-case scenario, but stressed that Biden is fine and can continue to serve a second term until he is 86.
Harris, who has struggled with 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 to it last week’s AP-NORC poll It found that 77 percent of Americans, including 69 percent of Democrats, think Biden is too old to run for re-election.
Vice President Kamala Harris stressed on Wednesday that she was ready to take power from President Joe Biden, but assured Americans that he could serve as president until age 86.
That’s according to a poll by the Wall Street Journal 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, saying Biden was willing to serve as president until January 2025.
“Let me first say that our president has been an extraordinary leader who has achieved things that previous presidents hoped, dreamed and promised they would do and failed to accomplish,” 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 issues and weave through complex issues in a way no one else can, to make smart and important decisions on behalf of the American people have been played out,” Harris continued.
“And so I will say to you that I think the American people ultimately want to know that their president is getting results — and that Joe Biden is getting results,” the vice president added.
Harris also answered in the affirmative when Megerian asked if she was willing to run for president.
“Yes,” she said.
He then asked her to “describe that process.”
“Well, first of all, let’s — I’m answering your hypothetical question — but Joe Biden is fine, so that’s not going to work,” Harris said.
President Joe Biden is captured leaving a Medal of Honor ceremony before final prayer on Tuesday, another incident that raised questions about his age
President Biden removes his face mask during the ceremony
“But let’s also understand that every vice president, every vice president, understands that when they take the oath, they have to be very clear about the responsibility they may have to take over the job of the presidency,” she said . “I’m no different.”
Harris was plagued by low approval ratings, and in late June, NBC found she had reached a record low approval rating among vice presidents since the network’s polls began.
Only 32 percent of registered voters approved of her.
That, coupled with Biden’s age issues, has left the Democratic ticket ripe for attack.
The Republican candidate who has gained the most advantage so far is the former UN ambassador. Nikki Haley, who opened her presidential campaign with the idea that candidates over age 75 should take mental competence tests.
She has since focused on Biden’s age by suggesting that Harris could run for president.
“We can’t have Kamala Harris as president. We can’t risk this,” Haley said on Fox Business’ Sunday Morning Futures in late August. “We need to make sure we have a new generation leader who will bring in not only Republicans, but also independents, suburban women, Hispanics and the Asian community.”
“We have to make sure we win this one, because the thought of Kamala Harris becoming president should send shivers down every American’s spine,” Haley added.