(VOR News) – On August 31, President Joe Biden was asked about his fall campaign. “On the road from there on,” he said, visiting Pittsburgh on Labour Day.
Biden hasn’t appeared since Labour Day in Kamala Harris’s campaign. Beyond that, his ceremonial occasions occasionally eclipse hers.
Hurricane Helene forced Harris to travel to Washington for a FEMA briefing, postponing Las Vegas campaign operations. Harris distracted his political successor by reaching for a command center podium as Joe Biden issued his storm response remarks from the Oval Office.
Democrats may win the House, Senate, and lower-ballot races, including Harris, without presidential campaigning or scheduling issues. Former President Obama questioned Harris. Before November 5 in Pittsburgh on Thursday, Obama will tour battleground states. Recorded Florida, Maryland, and Michigan Democratic Senate advertisements.
Managing a new presidential campaign is hard.
Lame-duck presidents grapple with succession. Harris had less time to campaign once Joe Biden left for a second term.
Friday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “I think he’s doing his job as president.” “That seems to be the most crucial factor,”
Hurricane Helene created temporary issues.
Biden postponed his Pennsylvania campaign event and drove with Harris to the Carolinas and Georgia on Wednesday to assess damage and offer support.
Their remarks varied. On Friday, Biden unexpectedly entered the White House briefing room and disrupted Harris’s presentation on unions outside Detroit. It was his first presidential address.
On Tuesday, Biden will help Democratic Sen. Bob Casey in suburban Philadelphia and travel to battleground Harris’s staff ignored Biden’s run.
The president of Pennsylvania is tied to union leaders and blue-collar workers. Brazile promised to “put him on a bus” for PA’s campaign.
Brazile: “I would make sure he is out there in the final weeks and days of the campaign.” “He has connections to people she will require.”
At a White House gun control rally with Harris in August, Biden declared, “We cannot let Kamala lose.” Both frequently discuss the Middle East in the Situation Room.
Joe Biden and Harris’s lone campaign event failed.
The White House proposed that Biden introduce Harris at their lone political engagement on Labour Day, when the vice president replaced the president. Her procedural violation emphasized union aid.
“Electing Kamala Harris to the presidency will prove to be the best choice you have ever made,” Biden addressed the assembly. Biden uncomfortably grabbed close friends’ hands after speaking since Harris hadn’t.
Democratic voters prefer Harris over Biden; thus, Harris may not want Biden’s help. Harris lauded the administration and her work while neglecting major issues.
That includes encouraging gun ownership more than Biden, restricting US-Mexico border asylum, and raising affluent Americans’ long-term capital gains taxes after Biden slashed them.
Many things need Joe Biden’s time.
Biden’s campaign absence may worsen as his administration handles Hurricane Helene and the Middle East.
“When you’re doing your job, you don’t need to campaign,” said Nikki Fried, Florida Democratic Party chair. Fried said Biden’s Thursday visits to numerous states showed that “the full force of the federal government stands with the people during times of heartbreak and uncertainty.”
Presidents are always busy, as shown by last month’s New York U.N. General Assembly meetings and Joe Biden’s Germany and Angola travels. Despite the White House promising further political action after the trip, he can’t campaign for Harris until mid-October, three weeks before Election Day.
Joe Biden can succeed, says Fried.
Says “Joe Biden adores being out on the campaign trail.” “He’s seen interacting with voters and communities while strolling around, and it definitely puts a spring in his step and a smile on his face.”
Some things are better avoided.
Party candidates benefit from the president’s absences. Bush lost support after the 2008 financial crisis. McCain resigned, citing economic problems, after criticizing the government’s Katrina and the Iraq War.
“I want him to win whether my presence and support for him help him or if I oppose him and it helps him,” he adds.
In 2000, Al Gore distanced himself from Bill Clinton by condemning Monica Lewinsky and other misdeeds. That contributed to Gore’s narrow loss to Bush, according to Democrats.
Clinton and Biden are different, argues Hillary’s 1992 campaign planner, Paul Begala. Begala noted, “Clinton enjoyed widespread popularity in 2000.” “Biden is not.”
For Biden, Begala proposes “focusing on governing, and leaving the campaigning to Kamala” and her closest allies.
“A lot of people can campaign for her: Oprah, Taylor Swift, the Obamas, and the Clintons.” Only Biden can be president.
SOURCE: AP
SEE ALSO:
Canada Stays on Sidelines as World Leaders Ink Historic Trade Deals Amid Trump Tariffs
