- Kamala Harris labels Biden’s reelection decision as “recklessness.”
- The comments are part of her upcoming memoir 107 Days, set for release on Sep. 23.
- Harris recalls internal White House tensions ahead of the 2024 election.
- She suggests Biden’s age and fatigue played a role in his failed campaign.
- Book tour includes 15 cities across the U.S., U.K., and Canada.
Kamala Harris, the former Vice President, is making headlines with candid revelations from her upcoming memoir 107 Days. In the book, Harris suggests that Joe Biden’s decision to run for reelection last year was nothing short of “recklessness.”
“And of all the people in the White House, I was in the worst position to make the case that he should drop out,” Harris wrote in an excerpt published by The Atlantic. “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.”
Harris added, “‘It’s Joe and Jill’s decision.’ We all said that, like a mantra, as if we’d all been hypnotized. 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.”
Her reflections come in the wake of Biden’s abrupt withdrawal from the 2024 race following a disastrous debate performance that reignited concerns about his age and cognitive health. Harris briefly launched her own presidential campaign but ultimately lost to Donald Trump, who returned to the White House.
Harris also addresses speculation about Biden’s mental acuity, particularly after leaked audio from his interview with Special Counsel Robert Hur revealed memory lapses and lack of focus.
“Many people want to spin up a narrative of some big conspiracy at the White House to hide Joe Biden’s infirmity. Here is the truth as I lived it,” Harris explained. “Joe Biden was a smart guy with long experience and deep conviction, able to discharge the duties of president.”
She continued, “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. That’s when his age showed in physical and verbal stumbles.”
Harris noted that the debate that damaged Biden’s campaign came on the heels of “two back-to-back trips to Europe and a flight to the West Coast for a Hollywood fundraiser,” emphasizing the toll travel and age had on his performance.
107 Days, which chronicles Harris’ short-lived presidential run and behind-the-scenes details of Biden’s final months in office, is set to hit shelves on September 23. She has already announced a 15-city book tour, including stops in major U.S. cities as well as the United Kingdom and Canada.
