Kamala Harris and Joe Biden will next week make their first joint campaign trip after the US President’s shock decision to drop out of the 2024 White House race against Donald Trump.
Biden will appear alongside his vice president at an event in Maryland state, near Washington, on August 15, to polish his legacy and support the new Democratic ticket in the final months of his term.
The White House said in a statement Friday that the two leaders would “discuss progress being made to reduce costs for the American people,” adding that further details would be released later.
Inflation remains a weak point for Democrats ahead of the November election.
Harris has caused a stir in the Democratic Party since Biden announced he was stepping down from his position following a disastrous debate against Trump that highlighted concerns about his age and mental acuity.
The first female, Black and South Asian vice president in U.S. history has held multiple packed rallies, raised record amounts of money and eroded Republican former President Trump’s poll lead.
In contrast, Biden has kept his activity low-key with very few public events, giving his presidency a lame-duck feel even with nearly six months to go before his successor takes office in January.
The president, who is currently spending a long weekend at his Delaware beach house, was not expected to attend any major political events in support of Harris until the Democratic National Convention, which begins in Chicago on August 19.
But there are also signs that the veteran Democrat is eager to carry on his legacy as he prepares to retire from a nearly five-decade career in US politics.
Limited Time
Part of that is that he is doing everything he can to ensure Harris wins against his opponent and the man who defeated Trump in the 2020 election.
Harris’s presence was clearly seen alongside Biden at a historic moment last week, when they welcomed back home American reporter Ivan Gershkovitch and other detainees released in a major prisoner swap with Russia.
Harris now seeks Biden’s support in battleground states such as Pennsylvania and Michigan, where she is still popular, especially among older white voters, news outlet Politico reported.
But he said he would make sure Harris remained in the spotlight, and that there would be a mainly limited campaign in the fall.
Meanwhile, Biden warned against a repeat of the events that followed the 2020 election earlier this week, when Trump disputed his defeat and his supporters stormed the US Capitol.
In his first interview since dropping out of the election, Biden told broadcaster CBS he had “no confidence at all” in a peaceful transfer of power if Trump lost a second term.
Another priority for Biden in his remaining days in office is to push for a ceasefire to end the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza — an issue that remains divisive for Democrats.
Biden and the leaders of Egypt and Qatar have invited the warring sides to resume talks on Aug. 15 — the same day he will make a joint appearance with Harris — to push for a deal.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
