Vice President Kamala Harris insisted Wednesday that she was ready to ‘take over’ from President Joe Biden if the 80-year-old fell ill and couldn’t carry on running the country.
The VP outlined the worst-case scenario, but contended Biden is good and can remain performing through a second term until he is 86.
Harris, who has struggled with bleak approval ratings, supported the president’s age during an interview with the Associated Press at the ASEAN Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The AP’s Chris Megerian pointed to last week’s AP-NORC poll that found 77 percent of Americans, including 69 percent of Democrats, believe Biden is too old to run for reelection.
A Wall Street Journal poll out Monday had comparable findings, with 73 percent of voters saying Biden is too old to run again, including two-thirds of Democrats.
Harris dismissed worries and said Biden was ready to serve as president until January 2025.
‘First of all, let me say that our president has been an extraordinary leader who has accomplished things that previous presidents hoped and dreamed and promised they would do and did not achieve,’ she said.
‘So yes, I see him every day, a substantial amount of time we spend together is in the Oval Office, where I see how his ability to understand issues and weave through complex issues in a way that no one else can, to make smart and important decisions on behalf of the American people, have played out,’ Harris continued.
‘And so I will say to you, that I think the American people ultimately want to know that their president delivers – and Joe Biden delivers,’ the VP added.
‘Yes,’ she said.
He then prompted her to ‘describe that process.’
‘Well, first of all, let’s – I’m answering your hypothetical – but Joe Biden is going to be fine, so that is not going to come to fruition,’ Harris said.
‘But let us also understand that every vice president, every vice president, understands that when they take the oath, that they must be very clear about the responsibility they may have to take over the job of being president,’ she said. ‘I am no different.’
Harris has been afflicted with low approval numbers and in late June, NBC found that she hit a record for low approval among vice presidents since the network’s polling began.
Just 32 percent of registered voters approved of her.
That, combine dwith Biden’s age problems, have made the Democratic ticket ripe for attack.
The Repulbican candidate taking the most advantage, so far, has been former U.N. Amb. Nikki Haley, who opened up her presidential campaign by floating the idea that candidates older than 75 have to take mental competency tests.
Since then she’s focused on Biden’s age by suggesting Harris could become president.
‘We cannot have Kamala Harris as president. We can’t chance this,’ Haley said on Fox Business’ Sunday Morning Futures in late August. ‘We have to make sure we have a new generational leader who will bring in not only Republicans, but independents, suburban women, Hispanics and the Asian community.’
‘We have to make sure we win this because the thought of Kamala Harris being president should send a chill up every Americans’ spine,’ Haley added.
.@stevegrubershow: Biden is only still in power out of Democrats fear of Kamala Harris becoming president.
Watch LIVE➡ https://t.co/aeKhZCtVbe
Watch more #SteveGruberShow here: https://t.co/h5CAEcGZFY pic.twitter.com/N4jTvXHLPB
— Real America's Voice (RAV) (@RealAmVoice) September 6, 2023
"Her Excellency" Kamala Harris, the least popular vice president in modern American history, has time for a gala in Indonesia — but not the southern border.
Her last (and only) trip to the southern border as "border czar" was 803 days ago. pic.twitter.com/S3Cjy8TZ6Z
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 6, 2023
Kamala believes people should be held accountable under the law unless you’re a criminal burning down stores and police stations for George Floyd pic.twitter.com/O1WY6bzk7J
— Chaya Raichik (@ChayaRaichik10) September 6, 2023
Lord Jesus Mary and Joseph what is wrong with Kamala Harris
She is an embarrassment and her laughing is annoying.
Am I telling the Truth or Am I telling the TRUTH pic.twitter.com/WDqmZTebi8
— Terrence K. Williams (@w_terrence) September 1, 2023