The Rumored Tension Between Kamala Harris And Joe Biden, Explained

Ever since President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, people seemed to have kind of forgotten about him, and rumors are flying that Biden feels that Harris is giving him the cold shoulder too. During Harris' first debate against Donald Trump, in September, the former president said Harris "is Biden," to which she responded, "Clearly, I am not Joe Biden [...] What I do offer is a new generation of leadership for our country," (via ABC News). In fact, the vice president rarely mentioned her boss and his policies during their tense back and forth, and she notably didn't defend Biden against Trump's insults either. 

Now, rumor has it that there's some tension brewing. Unnamed White House sources who spoke to NBC News conveyed that the president is hurt by Harris' failure to mention him and his policies more often in her campaign speeches. She used to refer to Biden frequently upon entering the presidential race, but that's no longer the case. Aside from feeling a little wounded that his party has seemingly moved on without a second thought, sources clarified that Biden totally understood why it was happening from a political standpoint. But it still stung. In a comprehensive campaign speech focusing on economic policies, Harris failed to mention the commander in chief at all. 

She's even reverted to referring to the Biden-Harris administration as "we" instead of citing the president directly. The Democratic candidate has to toe the line between standing with Biden and also presenting herself as someone who will bring something new to the table, which is no easy task. According to sources, she's loyal to Biden and vice versa, but it's apparently putting a strain on their relationship with a source noting, "It's very complex." 

Experts pointed out that Kamala Harris had to set herself apart from President Joe Biden in order to get ahead in the November 2024 elections. "We have to tell people who she is and what she would do," a campaign official told NBC News. Another added, "She has to become her own person. She needs to do that to win." When the VP granted her first interview to CNN, as the Democratic presidential nominee, she offered up sufficient praise for Biden and all he had accomplished during his presidency, but Harris also made it abundantly clear that she wanted to be a changemaker. Phrases like "a new way forward" and "turn the page" made frequent appearances.

She received some criticism for this, with certain experts arguing that the nominee was trying to take credit for Biden's work while at the same time attempting to avoid being saddled with his mistakes. "She wants it both ways," political expert Larry Jacobs asserted to The Guardian, adding, "She's been trying to run as the change candidate, which is very strange because the change motif is for the challenger, not the incumbent party." Harris has also gone against some of Biden's policies, like when she suggested a smaller increase on capital gains tax than what the president initially proposed.

A White House insider explained to NBC News that Harris had an important decision to make when she entered the presidential race: Run as Biden 2.0 or establish herself as a candidate independent of the president. It's obvious which option she chose, and while speculation is rife that it's causing tension between the formerly close duo, White House spokesperson Andrew Bates dismissed the rumors as nothing but scuttlebutt. In fact, according to the insider, "These uninformed claims are the polar opposite of the truth."