Vice President Kamala Harris has confided in close allies and family that she is disappointed by President Biden’s recent assertion that he would have won the 2024 election, according to sources who spoke exclusively to The Wall Street Journal. This has added strain to their relationship during their final days in the White House.
Throughout her tenure as vice president, Harris has been reluctant to distance herself from Biden or criticize him publicly. Even when prominent Democrats urged her to separate herself from the unpopular president after she replaced him at the top of the ticket, she stood firmly by his side. Harris notably defended Biden after his stumbling debate performance in June, which led to widespread calls for him to withdraw, and during the fallout from a special counsel’s investigation into his handling of classified documents—an incident that raised concerns about his mental fitness.
The tension between Harris and Biden arises as Harris faces a difficult period. She is grappling with a crisis in her adopted hometown of Los Angeles, where devastating wildfires have caused widespread destruction, while also preparing to step away from public office. According to those close to her, Harris has expressed profound sadness over the election loss and Biden’s remarks. She and her husband, Doug Emhoff, are planning to divide their time between Los Angeles and New York after President-elect Donald Trump assumes office on January 20.
When asked in a USA Today interview whether he thought he could have defeated Trump, Biden responded, “It’s presumptuous to say that, but I think yes, based on the polling.” A few days later, he reiterated, “I could have beaten Trump, would have beaten Trump,” and added that Harris “could have beaten Trump, would have beaten Trump.”
Biden also explained his decision to exit the race, emphasizing his desire to preserve party unity. “I didn’t want to be the one who caused a party that wasn’t unified to lose an election,” he said. “That’s why I stepped aside.”
