Biden further elaborated on his reasons for dropping out of the presidential race in an interview with CBS News on Sunday, saying that Democratic colleagues told him his campaign would disadvantage members of the party who were lesser candidates.
“Many of my Democratic colleagues in the House and Senate thought that I was going to hurt them in the campaign, and they were concerned that if I continued the campaign, it would become a talking point, that Nancy Pelosi would end up being interviewed about why she said that, why she said that, and I thought that would be a real distraction,” Biden told CBS News’ Bob Costa.
Biden announced he was dropping out of the presidential race at the end of July and quickly endorsed Vice President Harris. A few weeks after his first debate with Donald Trump, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senator Chuck Schumer and other Democrats reportedly privately called on Biden to drop out.
“The polls show it’s going to be a close race, and it’s going to be close all the way to the end,” Biden added.
President Biden spoke during an interview with CBS News’ Bob Costa that aired Sunday, August 11, 2024. (Screenshot/CBS)
Pelosi denies having “good” relationship with Biden: “I’d have to ask him”
Pelosi recently said she hasn’t spoken to Biden since he dropped out of the race.
The former House speaker also continues to deny that she told the president to step down. She told reporters in a recent interview that the president had no path to victory.
“I really wanted a better campaign right now. Our campaign was not on a path to victory, and members in their districts knew that,” Pelosi told reporters.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and President Biden. (Getty Images)
For more articles on Media and Culture click here
“When I first ran, I thought I would be a transition president — I can’t even tell you how old I was. It’s hard to get those words out of my mouth. But things moved so quickly that that didn’t happen. And I think preserving our democracy was still an important issue to me, so I’m not kidding,” Biden said in the interview with Costa.
After assuring her Democratic colleagues that she would continue to campaign, Pelosi sat down with the hosts of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” one of the president’s favorite news shows, to suggest her decision was not final.
Click here to get the FOX News app
“It’s up to the president to decide whether he wants to run or not, and we’re all urging him to make that decision, because time is running out,” Pelosi told MSNBC when asked if she would support the president running for re-election.
Pelosi reportedly said in the “Morning Joe” interview that she did not mean to put Trump in a difficult position, but acknowledged that it had reignited debate about whether he should be removed from the shortlist.
“Maybe he thinks what I said triggered something. I haven’t spoken to him since then, so I don’t know,” Pelosi told reporters recently. The Washington Post.
