WASHINGTON — In the week since President Joe BidenAfter Vice President Kamala Harris’s disappointing performance at the debate, he has emerged publicly and privately as one of his most ardent defenders — and as the person with the most support to succeed him if he were to step down.
NBC News spoke to seven sources who stressed that while Harris is focused on building trust in Biden, her loyal allies have made it clear that if the opportunity arises for her to take a leadership role, she will have broad support within the party. Those allies, including several Black Democrats, have said openly that any attempt to oust her this year would be met with forceful, vocal opposition.
“I think she’s done a very good job on her feet,” said the Rev. Al Sharpton, who added that while he continues to support Biden as the party’s nominee, Harris shouldn’t be passed over if Biden drops out. “She’s always been good. I just think she’s better. And I think she’s better than any of the names that have been mentioned.”
Sharpton, a civil rights activist and MSNBC host, added that he has “no doubt” that the motivation of anyone trying to depose Harris, the first Black woman of South Asian descent to become vice president, is “racist and misogynistic.”
“If anybody tries, they should know that I’m standing on the tracks trying to stop the train,” Sharpton said of any attempt to put anyone other than Harris at the top of the ticket. “When people voted for Biden to be the nominee, they voted for the Biden-Harris ticket. How are you going to untie that ticket and throw it open? There’s no legitimate excuse. The calculus is, ‘We can do this because she’s a woman and she’s black.’ Well, blacks and women should not have to tolerate that calculus.”
Minutes into the debate, Harris went on television to forcefully defend Biden. Three sources familiar with the series of interviews said Harris had not been given any official talking points by the campaign and had very little time to prepare.
Her swift response gave Democrats a blueprint for Biden’s defense, one that has been repeated time and again since she uttered these words on CNN: “I’m not going to spend the whole night talking to you about the last 90 minutes, when I’ve looked at the accomplishments of the last 3½ years.”
Democrats have also followed her lead after her former President Donald Trump for spreading “lies” and creating “harm across the country” and made it clear that she was fully focused on defeating Trump in November.
The impact of Harris’ ability to quickly push back on questions about Biden’s energy and ability to handle a second term has helped to quiet some of the criticism that has dogged her for years, including questions about her effectiveness in government and her ability to win the presidency. The Biden campaign has used her interviews as talking points to defend the president, and some Democrats have privately pointed to her record as evidence that she should not be tossed aside as the party’s nominee if Biden drops out of the race.
Meanwhile, Harris herself has been fielding calls from and making phone calls to dozens of party leaders, civil rights activists and donors to reassure them about the path forward with Biden as the nominee and to help unite the party, according to four sources who spoke directly with Harris over the past week. During those calls, Harris has reiterated her commitment to Biden and that Biden has weathered tough storms in the past, including when his path in the 2020 primaries was uncertain.
One person familiar with Harris’ thinking said the message was: “We’re ready for this fight. Let’s stay positive. Let’s keep our heads down. And let’s execute, because we’ve got a lot of work to do.”
On Wednesday, Biden and Harris participated in a call with their campaign team and delivered similar messages.
“We will not back down,” Harris said. “We will follow the example of our president. We will fight and we will win. … Joe Biden has dedicated his life to fighting for the people of our country. Right now, I know we are all ready to fight for him.”
Leah D. Daughtry, a Democratic political strategist with close ties to Harris’s office, agreed, saying Democrats should focus on defeating Trump.
“President Biden had a bad night,” Daughtry said. “I think the disregard for his work over the last 3½ years and what he’s actually accomplished over the course of his presidency is really quite inexcusable and quite astonishing, in my opinion.”
Within Harris’ office, she and her supervisors have also made it clear that aides should remain focused on supporting Biden as the top candidate and not get involved in discussions about replacing him, according to two sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity to speak freely about the discussions.
Donna Brazile, a veteran Democratic political strategist and former chair of the Democratic National Committee, said talk of replacing Biden on the ballot is “an attack on the democratic process” and “absolute nonsense.”
“How can we say we’re the party that has to preserve and strengthen democracy and then overturn the will of the American people?” Brazile said. “That’s why none of us who are representatives are having this conversation.”
Two sources also said Harris was not originally part of the White House’s July 4 celebration with Biden, but was added to emphasize their message of “unity” as external pressure mounts for Biden to withdraw.
Still, even with Harris presenting a united front, many — including top Democratic donors and Democratic lawmakers — have questioned whether Harris should be the Democratic presidential nominee if Biden were to leave office. Governors Gavin Newsom of California, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois and Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan have all been mentioned as potentially stronger choices to replace Biden.
Some Democrats in Congress have whispered that Harris is an even scarier primary candidate than the weakened Biden, as many polls in recent years have shown her less popular than he is.
A Democratic congressional aide said many Democrats in tough races are concerned about the “chaos” that would ensue if Harris were the nominee. There are “certainly plenty of people who are being pushed toward Biden because they’re worried that the alternatives aren’t doing as well, starting with her,” the aide said.
A Democratic strategist who worked on the House elections said the party’s candidates have been significantly outperforming Biden for months and generally prefer to run with him rather than Harris at the top of the ticket. But there was some shift after the debate.
“I’ve never heard so many people say, ‘Fuck it, Kamala would be better,’” the strategist said.
Questions about Harris’ ability to run for the top job have been met with deep frustration from some within the party, including many black Democrats.
Harris’ allies point to her success in her bid for state office, both as California’s attorney general and as a state senator. They also say she has distinguished herself over the past two years as the administration’s most prominent voice on abortion rights, a key issue for voters, and on issues like the economy, which she has pushed hard to turn out black, Latino and other voters of color.
Brazile, who has been adamant that the party has no intention of replacing Biden, said that if Biden decides to step down, she and other Black women in the party would not allow Harris to be passed over.
“If someone wanted to look past the vice president of the United States and find someone else, if this was a legitimate scenario or conversation, they would still have to come through some of us,” Brazile said. “Black women are still the backbone of this party. We have been the backbone. And we will continue to help lead the Democratic Party. I’m not saying we’re playing a race card or a gender card. We’re playing a leadership card. And Vice President Harris has been part of the leadership in this Democratic Party.”
Meanwhile, Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., a Biden-Harris campaign co-chair who played a key role in helping Biden win the nomination by backing him in the 2020 South Carolina primary, told MSNBC he would “support” Harris if Biden “stepped aside.”
“This party should not be doing anything to bypass Miss Harris in any way,” Clyburn said. “We should be doing everything we can to strengthen her, whether she’s in second place or at the top of the ticket.”
There’s also the matter of money and who would be able to use Biden’s campaign account, which as of May 31 held $91.2 million. On Sunday, Biden’s campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said during a tense call between campaign staff and donors that if Biden were to leave office, Harris would handle the bulk of the money in the campaign account. And Harris’ donors have also begun strategizing about what her candidacy would look like if Biden were to decide not to proceed with her candidacy.
A CNN poll released Tuesday also found that Harris would fare better than Biden in a hypothetical matchup with Trump. The poll found that 47% of registered voters would back Trump and 45% would back Harris, though the result is within the margin of error. Historically, however, Harris’ approval ratings have often lagged behind Biden’s, which has also been low.
Still, some around Harris say she remains focused on reassuring elected officials and others that the debate didn’t materially change the race — on conveying that the president she works with every day is still in charge of the job, on mobilizing pockets of the Biden-Harris coalition that need to be bolstered, including major-party donors and voters, and on pursuing the case against Trump’s election.
Her message, they said, sounds a lot like what Harris said at a campaign rally in Los Angeles the day after the debate.
“Four things remain true before that debate and after that debate: The stakes are higher than ever,” Harris said to applause. “This person [Trump] is a threat to our democracy. We have all the right issues on our side in terms of what we’re fighting for. And you know what the fourth thing that remains true before the debate and after the debate is? Trump is still a liar.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
