President Biden is reportedly grumbling behind closed doors that Vice President Kamala Harris hasn’t been mentioning him or “Bidenomics” enough in her recent campaign speeches.
Biden, 81, has privately complained to allies that Harris and the Democratic Party appear to have “moved on from him” since his July exit from the 2024 race, and that his “accomplishments” are no longer being highlighted as Election Day nears, according to an NBC News report on Monday.
The president was particularly upset at one instance in which the 59-year-old vice president did invoke his name – during her Sept. 10 debate against former President Donald Trump – but in an effort to distance herself from his policies.
President Biden speaks after meeting on the ongoing response to the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in the Oval Office of the White House on Sept. 30, 2024. Getty Images
“Clearly, I am not Joe Biden,” Harris said in response to an accusation from Trump that “she is Biden” when it comes to economic policy. “And I am certainly not Donald Trump. And what I do offer is a new generation of leadership for our country.”
Biden reportedly feels Harris should be playing up his economic policies, and that he should be mentioned when she talks about the “positive trajectory” of the economy, according to the report.
“It’s very complex,” a person familiar with Biden’s thinking told the outlet of the president’s emotional state as he’s been phased out of Harris’ campaign after ending his re-election bid and promptly endorsing her.
Others familiar with Biden’s private comments indicated that the president has been “anguishing over his imprint’s vanishing from the national stage” and that he sometimes feels his legacy is dependent on Harris beating Trump in November.
The president, however, appears to understand the political reasoning behind Harris running away from his record.
Democratic presidential candidate Harris speaks to media at the Douglas Port of Entry at the US-Mexico border in Douglas, Arizona, on Sept. 27, 2024. AFP via Getty Images
“He understands completely the general lack of mentioning ‘Bidenomics’ and ‘Joe Biden.’ Politically he gets that,” a person familiar with their dynamic told the outlet.
Biden allies also indicated that the president still “feels loyal” to Harris and will do whatever he can to help her win — despite also feeling “left behind.”
In defending the decision to phase references to Biden out of the Democratic nominee’s campaign, a Harris official told NBC News that the campaign has “to tell people who [Harris] is and what she would do.”
“There wasn’t a real interest in hearing about [Biden’s] accomplishments when he was running,” the Harris campaign official added. “That’s still the case.”
The White House did not respond to The Post’s request for comment.
White House spokesperson Andrew Bates told NBC News that the report was “the polar opposite of the truth.”
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