When Joe Biden stepped off Air Force One in California early Tuesday morning last week, he was visibly shaking.
It was now almost 5:30 a.m. (East Coast time) and the President had been awake for almost 24 hours.
He slowly walked down the plane steps and struggled to get into the SUV that would take him to the 20,000-acre Santa Barbara ranch where he and his family had just spent a week’s vacation. His Secret Service agents surrounded him, shielding him from the cameras as one of them gave him a helping push into the car.
On the platform, First Lady Jill Biden looked on, visibly concerned. After all, her husband — who dropped out of the race nearly a month ago — had just ended his arduous journey from Democratic nominee to lame duck president.
Last Monday, Biden flew to Chicago to speak on the first night of the Democratic National Convention.
The speech was scheduled to take place around 10:30 p.m. ET and the evening was to be a swan song, a farewell to party stalwarts and a passing of the torch to his vice president and the new Democratic candidate, Kamala Harris.
When Joe Biden stepped off Air Force One in California early Tuesday morning last week, he was visibly shaking.
In the end, he didn’t speak until well after rush hour: he left the stage at 12:15 a.m., while most Americans had long since gone to bed.
The busy speaking schedule forced the cancellation of a planned video tribute to the president at the last minute, as did an expected appearance by James Taylor, one of Biden’s favorite singers, in a desperate attempt to get him on stage before midnight.
Jill and their daughter Ashley spoke to introduce Biden. Many noted how brief the two women’s remarks appeared to be, though the White House insists neither speech was edited.
Still, the organizational failure will have done little to quell what has been described in recent weeks as the First Lady’s growing sense of “betrayal” over the Democratic Party’s treatment of her husband.
Earlier this month, the Mail exclusively reported how former Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent Biden a message on Saturday, June 20, threatening to go public with her concerns about his candidacy if he did not withdraw from the race. The next day, Biden tweeted a letter confirming his withdrawal, before endorsing Harris.
Pelosi’s ultimatum would have enraged the Bidens and all but destroyed the 50-year friendship between their families.
The Biden clan left Chicago almost immediately after his speech ended. The flight to California took about four hours, with the president spending much of that time in foreign security briefings. It’s unlikely he got much sleep at all.
But the sight of Biden, shaking with exhaustion, leaving Air Force One after his own party had humiliated him on the world stage was far from exceptional. It was one of many behind-the-scenes dramas in a week so fraught with partisanship that it began to resemble a Shakespearean tragedy.
The unrest continued on Tuesday as Michelle and Barack Obama delivered keynote speeches at the United Center in Chicago.
While Barack heaped praise on his former vice president, calling him his “brother” and thanking him for his service, Michelle Biden conspicuously did not mention him once during her stirring 23-minute speech.
Was it a snub? Insiders say yes — adding that the former First Lady reportedly declined to speak at the convention while Biden was still in the running for 2024.
Michelle is reportedly still angry with the Bidens for the way they treated her good friend Kathleen Buhle, Hunter Biden’s ex-wife.
Buhle was ostracized by the family during a lengthy separation from Hunter dating back to 2017.
Michelle never campaigned for Biden when he was the nominee and, sources say, has only confirmed her speaking engagement at the DNC after He was out of the way.
It was one of many behind-the-scenes dramas in a week so fraught with partisan strife it began to resemble a Shakespearean tragedy. (Photo: The Obamas)
Monday night’s organizational failure did little to help what has been described in recent weeks as the First Lady’s growing sense of “betrayal” over the Democratic Party’s treatment of her husband.
Meanwhile, in the front row was the woman leading the attack on Biden: Nancy Pelosi.
When asked by the Mail on Monday whether he was still angry with Pelosi or whether he had spoken to her recently, Biden simply replied, “No, I haven’t spoken to her.”
However, it appears that the president wants to take revenge, namely by fully supporting Harris as the party’s new candidate.
Pelosi and Harris are both from California, but they are not close. When Harris first entered the race for the state’s attorney general in 2010, Pelosi supported a rival candidate.
After Biden withdrew, Pelosi favored an open Congress rather than a coronation for Harris, about whom she reportedly had serious reservations.
There is strong speculation that Biden endorsed Harris within hours of his withdrawal precisely to irritate Pelosi — and prevent her from removing Harris, just as she had done to him.
The television cameras were focused on Pelosi as Biden addressed the convention on Monday. She sat with the California delegation, holding a “We heart Joe” sign and uncomfortably whispering along to chants of “We love you.”
Biden aides are keen to stress that Joe and Jill have “moved on” and are “looking forward to the future,” but insiders say otherwise.
Biden is also said to still hold a grudge against his old boss, after Obama favored Hillary Clinton’s candidacy over his own in 2016.
Reports earlier this summer suggested that Obama had secretly urged Biden to withdraw from the 2024 race. But when the former president’s close friend, actor George Clooney, wrote a scathing op-ed in the New York Times openly calling for Biden’s departure, that resentment appeared to have turned into outright anger.
On Tuesday night, while the Obamas were addressing the convention, Harris was holding a campaign rally 90 miles away, in Milwaukee. It was no coincidence.
According to insiders, Harris decided to be absent out of sensitivity and respect for Biden.
Pelosi (pictured) and Harris are both from California, but are not close. Pelosi has favored an open convention rather than a coronation for Harris, about whom she reportedly has serious reservations.
On Tuesday night, while the Obamas were addressing the convention, Harris was holding a campaign rally 90 miles away in Milwaukee. The decision to be absent was made out of sensitivity and respect for Biden, insiders say.
But Harris hardly needed the visual triumph onstage with Barack Obama. The two would be close. Harris was an early supporter of his 2008 campaign, backing him over Clinton. They speak often on the phone.
After Harris delivered her final speech to the DNC on Thursday, Obama posted his praise on Twitter.
‘[Harris] represents the best of America. Let’s get to work,’ he wrote.
With just 70 days to go until the election, Democrats have their work cut out for them if they want to prevent their own internal problems, sparked by the impeachment of a sitting president, from derailing Harris’ campaign.