Biden says Kamala Harris 'ready to be president on Day 1' if someone pushes him 'off a roof'
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden had vowed to pick a woman as his running mate for the 2020 presidential election and he kept his promise by choosing California Senator Kamala Harris, who was a challenger to Biden during the primary race but bowed out prematurely. Biden, who will be the oldest president to take oath on the inauguration day next January at 78 if he wins the election, indicated last December that he would serve as a single-term president, and that added to the importance of the vice president’s position. Many hope that Harris could be closest to becoming the first woman president of the US and make history.
On Wednesday, September 23, Biden gave yet another hint at the big role that Harris is likely to play if he comes to power. Speaking on Steve Harvey’s radio show, the former vice president said the California senator would be ready to step in on “day one” as president if he meets an unfortunate accident like getting pushed off a roof. He even praised Harris, more than 20 years junior to him, as “so good” and “so damn bright and knowledgeable”.
“She’s ready to be president on Day 1 if I - if somebody pushed me off a roof or something,” he said. “There are a lot of really fine women that I had to choose from, but I think she’s ready on day one.”
Biden had called himself a 'transition' candidate
In May, Biden called himself a “transition” candidate at a virtual fundraiser and praised former South Bend mayor Pete Buttigieg, also a former presidential runner, saying he wanted “to bring the Mayor Petes of the world into this administration.”
Biden, during a virtual fundraiser tonight, praised @PeteButtigieg (who co-hosted the event) for his leadership. Biden called himself a “transition candidate to bring the Mayor Petes of the world into this administration.”
— Madeleine Rivera (@madeleinerivera) May 1, 2020
Last month, however, Biden said in an interview with ABC News that he was “absolutely” ready to serve two terms as the president. The former veep will be 86 if he gets to complete two terms at the White House, something that has never happened before. He also told ABC 27 News in Pennsylvania this month that he exercises daily and is in “relatively good shape.” He said wouldn’t be running for the highly demanding job of the presidency unless he was in “very good health.”
A recent Rasmussen survey found that 59 percent of likely voters and 49 percent of Democrats feel that there is a good chance of Harris becoming the president before Biden’s first term comes to an end, provided he wins the election. Biden, who will face Trump for the first presidential debate on September 29, is often mocked by the incumbent and his campaign team as somebody with a declining cognitive ability and lonely figure. Trump regularly targets his Democratic opponent as somebody unfit for the post of the presidency and even ridicules him for wearing masks as a precaution against coronavirus.
One recent survey said that most voters in six key states think neither Biden nor Trump is mentally fit to be the president but another survey released by Fox News showed more number of Americans are of the opinion that Biden is more sound mentally to become the president than Trump.