While Kamala Harris was furious that Ron DeSantis was playing politics with preparations for Hurricane Milton, President Joe Biden might have been expected to side with her.
But when Biden was asked about suggestions that the Florida governor had ignored his vice president’s calls, he gave no such endorsement and instead praised the Republican.
Biden told reporters: ‘All I can do is tell you that I have spoken with Governor DeSantis. “He has been very kind, he has thanked me for everything we have done, he knows what we are doing and I think that is important.”
His comments appeared to seriously undermine Harris’s position.
Harris had criticized DeSantis after he didn’t take calls from her and her team before Milton made landfall.
On Monday, he accused the governor of “playing political games with this moment,” adding that he was “absolutely irresponsible” and “selfish.”
Meanwhile, Biden has spoken several times with DeSantis about Florida’s needs. And he emphasized the depth of their partnership, revealing that he gave the governor his personal cell phone number.
‘The governor of Florida has cooperated. “He said he’s gotten everything he needs,” Biden said Tuesday, adding, “I said, no, you’re doing a great job, everything’s being done right, and we appreciate it.”
Conflicting messages from the White House have raised questions about whether Biden is simply doing his job as president or deliberately stealing the spotlight from the woman who replaced him as the Democratic nominee.
Whatever the reason, it doesn’t help Harris’ cause.
Republicans have latched onto Biden’s words and used them in ads and social media posts against Harris.
In all, the president has walked all over his vice president four times recently: twice over the dispute with DeSantis, once speaking for her at a hurricane briefing, and making a surprise appearance at the White House as he was about to give a great speech. campaign speech.
“I have no idea if this is deliberate or accidental,” University of Vermont professor John Burke told DailyMail.com of Biden’s actions. “Surely that doesn’t help his campaign.”
President Joe Biden has repeatedly undermined Kamala Harris’ campaign message
It can be difficult for presidents to give up power, especially if, like Biden, they have worked their entire lives to reach the Oval Office.
Biden had two failed presidential campaigns under his belt before winning on his third try in the 2020 election. Had it not been for his disastrous debate performance, he would currently be making his fourth bid for the White House.
As voters, media coverage and attention focus on the new candidate, sometimes the outgoing leader is left behind, which can be frustrating, experts have noted.
Biden’s slights toward Harris may stem from that frustration, especially since he was kicked out of the race by party leaders who were concerned about his ability to beat Donald Trump.
It could also be a simple miscommunication between the White House and the Harris campaign.
“Setbacks are inevitable when a vice president runs to succeed the president,” St. Louis University professor Joel Goldstein told DailyMail.com.
Goldstein, an expert on the transition process, added that “coordination can mitigate these cases, but some will occur.”
Biden enthusiastically endorsed Harris and supports her candidacy.
But, as press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre noted Wednesday: “There is one president at a time.”
Biden has another 100 days in office with plenty of issues at hand: two hurricanes, wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, and an upcoming battle over the federal budget.
In the last month, there have been several examples of when Biden is in presidential mode and seems to forget that he has a replacement to promote.
At a Hurricane Milton briefing on Wednesday, Biden forgot to call Harris and seemed surprised when she spoke up to ask National Weather Service Director Ken Graham a question.
He also spoke several times over his vice president, although she was slightly delayed as she joined the briefing virtually.
At a Hurricane Milton briefing, President Joe Biden forgot to call Vice President Kamala Harris (above left) during a conversation with federal officials.
There have also been other apparent instances in which Biden has regained some of the limelight.
Last week he made the first visit of his presidency to the White House press briefing room.
Even more notable is that he did so just as Harris was about to give a major campaign speech in Detroit.
All cable networks immediately cut the president’s surprise appearance, and CNN made it explicitly clear that they were abandoning Harris for Biden.
“We were actually about to go live with Vice President Kamala Harris, who is speaking right now in Detroit, Michigan,” said CNN anchor Boris Sanchez.
“She’s apparently talking about ending this dock strike, she’s trying to appeal to union workers, and yet the President of the United States comes out, clearly overshadowing her, answering important questions,” he continued.
Political strategist Frank Luntz, who was a guest on CNN at the time, observed that if the president and vice president’s teams had been coordinated “this wouldn’t have happened.”
Republicans have been taking political advantage of the president’s apparent need for attention.
Trump has falsely claimed that this shows that Biden hates Harris more than him.
The Republican candidate said: ‘Did you see he (Biden) held a press conference right in the middle of the big event he’s had in about two weeks?
“He got up and gave a press conference,” the former president added incredulously.
Part of the tension may arise from how Harris has campaigned as an agent of change, trying to distance herself from the president’s administration and curry favor with those who have “Biden fatigue.”
In response, Biden has repeatedly linked himself to her.
“As president, there was nothing I did that she couldn’t do, so I was able to delegate responsibility for everything from foreign policy to domestic policy,” Biden told ABC’s The View of Harris in late September. . .
It’s a common problem for candidates running in the same party as the sitting president: how to take credit for accomplishments but still be different from the occupant of the Oval Office.
Voters crave change, and trying to achieve it while remaining loyal to the current commander in chief can be a difficult balancing act.
It’s not just Biden and Harris who have struggled.
Hillary Clinton tried to differentiate herself from Barack Obama and “Obama fatigue” in the 2016 election. George HW Bush had to deal with Ronald Reagan’s shadow in 1988.
President Joe Biden has endorsed Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign
But the most infamous example may be Dwight Eisenhower’s comment about his then-vice president Richard Nixon in the 1960 campaign. Eisenhower was asked for an example of what Nixon contributed to his administration.
“If you give me a week, maybe I’ll come up with one,” he replied.
Biden is no stranger to quick quips and cheap shots. This is often how you express your unhappiness with someone.
Shortly after dropping out of the 2024 race, he was asked about his legacy with LGBTQ Americans.
He pointed to comments he made in 2011, when he was vice president, and expressed support for same-sex marriage. At the time, his comments took then-President Obama by surprise.
“Well, I’m really proud of my position,” Biden said. “I was the first man to come out in favor of gay marriage. Remember that little problem with the Obama administration?
Many saw his words as a dig at the former president, who worked behind the scenes this summer to knock Biden out of the presidential race.
And, for Biden, there might also be that twinge of regret that he gave up his position of power after working more than 40 years to get there.
‘Do you want to reconsider dropping out of the race?’ a reporter asked him on Friday.
Biden, leaving the press conference room, paused to respond.
“I’m back,” he said, smiling.
It was a joke, but as you watch your vice president run for your job, maybe you’d really like to be one.
