The Biden-Harris Administration is winding down, but though January 20th is approaching relentlessly for the current occupations of the White House and Naval Observatory, the gaffes and awkward moments are continuing unabated. Most recently, that took the form of President Joe Biden telling Vice President Kamala Harris, “you’re not going anywhere, kid.”
President Biden’s comments, made during a Democratic National Committee (DNC) holiday reception in Washington, D.C. at which the President and Vice President appeared, come amidst public curiosity about what, if anything, Vice President Harris will do after handily losing the 2024 presidential contest to now-President-elect Donald Trump.
Further, it comes amidst seeming tensions between the Harris and Biden camps. That was something recently shown when President Biden and Dr, Jill appeared at an event alongside Vice President Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff, but then the Bidens seemingly didn’t acknowledge Harris and her husband despite being right next to them.
Additionally, Dr. Jill seemed to mock Kamala’s “joy” campaign line in a recent speech. Doing so, Dr. Jill said, “And that just for a moment, when you leave here today, that you feel, I don’t know, a little a sense of joy. Because i think we all need like this, you know, we all need to feel joy now, during this, this time of the season, during just during this time.”
In any case, President Biden, speaking at the DNC holiday event, began by praising VP Harris. Doing so, he said, “I knew what I was doing when I asked her to be my vice president. I knew her. I knew of her. I knew about her. I knew her record. I trusted her. She always served this country with purpose and integrity and she always will.”
President Biden then turned to Vice President Harris and said, as the audience laughed and applauded, “You’re not going anywhere, kid, because we’re not going to let you go.” It was unclear whether he meant she will be staying in the political scene, or, as a deniable barb, that she has no political future. While the former seems like what was meant, the latter could made sense in the context of the seeming hostility described above. Watch Biden here:
Kamala has indicated that she doesn’t want to leave politics. Edward-Isaac Dovere, a senior reporter for CNN, recently said, describing what she has said about her plans, “What she’s been saying to people over the last couple of weeks — donors, other supporters that she’s been talking with — is, ‘You haven’t seen the last of me. I’m not going quietly into the night.’”
Continuing, Dovere added that those close to her don’t know exactly what she means, saying. “Advisers, people close to her are debating about what that means.” He further added that those who are close to Harris do not want her “final official act ever to be essentially certifying Donald Trump’s win,” adding that running in the California gubernatorial race would be a “layup” for her.
Watch him comment on that here:
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video
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