After anticipation of President Biden’s withdrawal stretching for weeks, the fact of it occurring less than 24 hours ago feels stunning. However, the stunning part may be how fast events are moving to anoint and fund Vice President Kamala Harris.
President Biden had a choice and he wasted no time with an immediate endorsement of Vice President Harris, claiming his selection of her to be Vice President was the best decision he’d made.
Just as importantly, the Biden campaign followed up yesterday evening by transferring the nearly $96 million in the Biden campaign to Vice President Harris. And, that was topped off by what is reportedly the largest one day fundraising record of this election cycle as the Harris campaign raised $46.7 million. Larger amounts are being pledged by the Super PAC funders and one report indicated that President Biden would hit the road to raise money where he will be welcomed as a hero during every event at which he appears.
The “hill” for any other Democrat thinking of running just became very, very steep!
Ironically, while many hoped President Biden’s decision would have come sooner, the urgency of getting everything sorted immediately may prove very helpful. Very little time is left, even if the process remains “open,” for anyone to emerge as a viable Democratic candidate as long as Vice President Harris steps forward effectively.
And, a word about her.
Regardless of how one views her politics, the discipline shown throughout the entire term, but especially over the past few weeks, to let events play themselves out while remaining loyal to the President is impressive.
Having had a front-row seat with Vice President Bush, I can only say that the role of Vice President for someone who has campaigned successfully for elected office in the past and finds themselves playing a supporting role to the President is extremely difficult.
By no means is this campaign close to being over, but it is rapidly being reset in a way that makes the contest much more competitive.
Craig Fuller served four years in the White House as assistant to President Reagan for Cabinet Affairs, followed by four years as chief of staff to Vice President George H.W. Bush. Having been engaged in five presidential campaigns and running public affairs firms and associations in Washington, D.C., he now resides on the Eastern Shore and publishes DECADE SEVEN on Substack.
