Kamala Harris rarely seen in public with Joe Biden any more as he flounders in polls
10172 Mins Read
Kamala Harris appears to be publicly distancing herself from Joe Biden in order to remain clear of any fallout ahead of a potential White House run in 2024 as the US president continues to flail in the polls.
The frequency of meetings, both private and public, between Mr Biden and Ms Harris has declined dramatically, especially since the president’s popularity began plummeting after the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in late August.
An almost complete lack of joint public appearances since then appeared to confirm a previous report by The Telegraph that White House strategists deliberately decided to shield Ms Harris from political contamination.
Mr Biden’s approval rating has now fallen faster in his first nine months than any president since the Second World War, and he faces a multitude of crises including rising inflation and supply chain issues.
There was also said to be concern in Ms Harris’s camp that she has not been given what one former adviser called an “all star portfolio,” having instead been asked to take on the highly contentious issues of border security and voting rights.
In what was initially billed as the “Biden-Harris” administration the president repeatedly vowed Ms Harris would be “the last person in the room” when he made big decisions.
They had 38 joint events in February, their first full month in office, and another 38 together in March.
But that has gradually fallen, especially after August.
They had just eight events together in September, and seven so far in October.
The vast majority of those were in private, with only two joint appearances in public in the last two months. Mr Biden and Ms Harris appeared together publicly at the Pentagon to mark the anniversary of 9/11, and for the 10th anniversary of the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial in October.
Photo – US President Joe Biden, with Vice President Kamala Harris, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA. EPA-EFE/SHAWN THEW
