Kamala Harris calls Democrats ‘reckless’ over Biden's run

Former US Vice President Kamala Harris has said that the Democrats’ decision to leave it to former President Joe Biden to take a call on whether to continue seeking another term last year was an act of “recklessness”.

She further stated that the stakes were “simply too high”, adding that the choice should not have been left to an “individual’s ego” and should have been more than a personal decision. Harris made the revelation in her book '107 Days', an excerpt of which was published in The Atlantic on Wednesday (September 10).

“’ It’s Joe and Jill’s decision.’ We all said that, like a mantra, as if we’d all been hypnotised. Was it grace, or was it recklessness? In retrospect, I think it was recklessness. The stakes were simply too high. This wasn’t a choice that should have been left to an individual’s ego, an individual’s ambition. It should have been more than a personal decision,” stated Harris in the book.

Also Read: Kamala Harris is competent to run again in four years: Biden

‘Naked ambition’

Elaborating on her ordeal further, Harris said that of all the people in the White House, she was the most ill-suited to suggest to Biden that he should not run for President again, adding that the former President would have seen it as “naked ambition”. She clarified that her only message was not to let the rival candidate, Donald Trump, win.

“And of all the people in the White House, I was in the worst position to make the case that he should drop out. I knew it would come off to him as incredibly self-serving if I advised him not to run. He would see it as naked ambition, perhaps as poisonous disloyalty, even if my only message was: Don’t let the other guy win,” wrote Harris.

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‘‘Joe got tired at 81’

She also said that despite the speculations over a “big conspiracy” regarding the White House’s alleged attempt to cover up Joe Biden’s “infirmity”, the truth was Biden was an experienced “smart guy” and even on his worst day was more capable of exercising judgment than Donald Trump on his best day. Harris wrote, but it was age that caught up to Biden, and at 81, he was tired.

“ Joe Biden was a smart guy with long experience and deep conviction, able to discharge the duties of president. On his worst day, he was more deeply knowledgeable, more capable of exercising judgment, and far more compassionate than Donald Trump on his best. But at 81, Joe got tired,” wrote Harris.

“That’s when his age showed in physical and verbal stumbles. I don’t think it’s any surprise that the debate debacle happened right after two back-to-back trips to Europe and a flight to the West Coast for a Hollywood fundraiser. I don’t believe it was incapacity,” she added.

Also Read: Biden has aggressive prostate cancer that is ‘treatable, but not curable’

Slams Biden’s staff

Harris further stated that the former President’s staff was “adding fuel to negative narratives” that sprang around her. She further stated that there was not enough effort to push back against the negative media coverage she received.

“And when the stories were unfair or inaccurate, the president’s inner circle seemed fine with it. Indeed, it seemed as if they decided I should be knocked down a little bit more, stated Harris.

“I also called on Israel for greater access to aid. It was a speech that had been vetted and approved by the White House and the National Security Council. It went viral, and the West Wing was displeased. I was castigated for, apparently, delivering it too well…Their thinking was zero-sum: If she’s shining, he’s dimmed,” she added.