The Obamas Endorse Harris: ‘This Is Going to Be Historic’
Barack and Michelle Obama have endorsed Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination for president, sharing the news in a joint phone call.
A video released by the campaign suggests the former president and first lady called Harris on Thursday while the vice president was in Houston, where she addressed the American Federation of Teachers and received a briefing on recovery efforts following Hurricane Beryl.
“We called to say, Michelle and I couldn’t be prouder to endorse you and do everything we can to get you through this election and into the Oval Office,” Barack Obama is heard telling Harris in a 55-second video of the call.
“This is going to be historic,” Michelle Obama tells Harris.
The endorsement video will put to rest a dubious narrative advanced by The New York Post that Barack Obama was withholding their support for Harris over doubts about her electability. The Post published a story Thursday in which an anonymous “Biden family source” reportedly said, “Obama’s very upset because he knows she can’t win.”
Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung cited the report in a statement announcing Trump was backing out of a debate with Harris, suggesting the party may still choose to replace her on the ticket. (Trump had previously promised to debate Harris “ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, ANYPLACE.”)
According to sources who spoke to NBC News, Obama pumped the brakes on his own endorsement in order to avoid overshadowing Biden’s address to the nation on Wednesday night. The address from the Oval Office was the president’s first public appearance since announcing his withdrawal from the campaign. “I revere this office, but I love my country more,” Biden said.
Despite the massive shift in her role, Harris’ first few days as Biden’s successor are off to an auspicious start. ActBlue, the leading fundraising platform for the Democratic party, received over $81 million in donations during the 24 hours after Biden’s announcement, a figure that has since surpassed $100 million.
Barack Obama had previously released a statement addressing Biden’s decision to withdraw from the race, without throwing his support behind any candidate. “I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges,” he said at the time.
Other prominent Democratic lawmakers, leaders, and former presidents moved quickly to back the vice president in the hours after Biden threw his support behind Harris, shortly after announcing that he would suspend his bid for reelection on Sunday. Bill and Hillary Clinton followed Biden in their endorsement, and over the last four days, the vast majority of the party has coalesced around Harris as the presumptive Democratic nominee.
In the video of the Obamas’ call, Harris thanks the couple for their endorsement and refers to plans that the former president and first lady will be out on the campaign trail advocating on her behalf. “I am looking forward to doing this with the two of you, Doug and I both,” she says. “And getting out there, being on the road.”
Harris adds: “But most of all, I just wanna tell you that the words you have spoken and the friendship that you have given over all these years mean more than I can express.”
The endorsement comes just five days after Harris took control of the campaign, and one day after Harris debuted her campaign launch video. The ad featured Beyonce’s 2016 single “Freedom,” as the backing track.
“Freedom not just to get by, but get ahead. The freedom to be safe from gun violence. The freedom to make decisions about your own body. We choose a future where no child lives in poverty, where we can all afford health care, where no one is above the law,” the vice president narrates over the track. “We believe in the promise of America and we are ready to fight for it. Because when we fight, we win.”