Biden-Harris campaign manager Dan Kaninen said Wednesday that the outcome of the 2024 election would not have changed even if Biden held the presidential ticket.
“I don't know how that would change the outcome, even if he was at the top of the ticket against Kamala Harris, who had a great performance for 107 days,” Kaninen told NewsNation's Blake Berman on “The Hill. ” he said.
During a recent interview with USA Today, the paper asked the president about his chances of winning the White House again in the last election, to which Biden replied that he could. Biden added that his views were based on polls he had seen, but the president did not provide details about where the data came from.
Last July, Mr. Biden's re-election campaign came to an end after a rough debate performance against Mr. Trump, raising questions about Mr. Biden's age and ability among Democrats to retake the White House. However, Kanninen further questioned this view.
“He was not harmful to the American people,” Kaninen said of President-elect Trump. “He had the highest approval rating in this campaign, higher than when he was president and when he first ran.”
“And it wasn't a proposal that we thought we would be campaigning on,” he added.
CNN's Harry Enten said in a video posted on social platform X on Wednesday that Biden could secure victory over Trump in the last election if he does not withdraw from the 2024 race. He called the president's recent comments “absolutely ridiculous.”
“Joe Biden claimed in his exit interview with USA Today that he could have defeated Donald Trump if he had stayed in the race,” Enten said in the video. “That begs the question: could Mr. Biden have won the 2024 election? [stayed] In the race? ”
“To tell you the truth, I would classify his statements as completely ridiculous,” he added.
Enten backed up his argument by citing not only Biden's low approval ratings, but also Biden's struggles in the polls and Trump's lead in battleground states.
Hill has reached out to the White House, Harris' office and the Trump transition team for comment.
NewsNation is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which also owns The Hill.
