Barack and Michelle Obama endorse Kamala Harris for president
Former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama have endorsed Kamala Harris in her White House bid, giving the vice president the expected but still crucial backing of the nation맥스카지노s two most popular Democrats.
The endorsement, announced Friday morning showing Harris accepting a joint phone call from the former first couple, comes as Harris continues to build momentum as the party맥스카지노s likely nominee after President Joe Biden맥스카지노s decision to end his reelection bid and endorse his second-in-command against Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump.
It also highlights the friendship and potentially historic link between the nation's first Black president and the first woman, first Black woman and first person of Asian descent to serve as vice president, who is now vying to break those same barriers at the presidential rank.
맥스카지노We called to say Michelle and I couldn맥스카지노t be prouder to endorse you and do everything we can to get you through this election and into the Oval Office,맥스카지노 the former president told Harris, who is shown taking the call as she walks backstage at an event, trailed by a Secret Service agent.
Said Michelle Obama, 맥스카지노I can맥스카지노t have this phone call without saying to my girl, Kamala, I am proud of you.
맥스카지노This is going to be historic,맥스카지노 she added.
Harris, who has known the Obamas since before his election in 2008, thanked them for their friendship and said she looks forward to 맥스카지노getting there, being on the road맥스카지노 with them in the three-month blitz before Election Day on Nov. 5.
맥스카지노We맥스카지노re gonna have some fun with this too, aren맥스카지노t we?맥스카지노 Harris said.
The Obamas are perhaps the last major party figures to endorse Harris formally 맥스카지노 a reflection of the former president맥스카지노s desire to remain, at least publicly, a party elder operating above the fray. The Obamas remain prodigious fundraising draws and popular surrogates at large campaign events for Democratic candidates.
According to an Associated Press survey, Harris already has secured the public support of a majority of delegates to the Democratic National Convention, which begins Aug. 19 in Chicago. The Democratic National Committee expects to hold a virtual nominating vote that would, by Aug. 7, make Harris and a yet-to-be-named running mate the official Democratic ticket.
Biden endorsed Harris within an hour of announcing his decision last Sunday to end his campaign amid widespread concern about the 81-year-old president맥스카지노s ability to defeat Trump. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, House Minority Whip Jim Clyburn, former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton followed in the days after.
The Obamas, however, trod carefully as Harris secured the delegate commitments, made the rounds among core Democratic constituencies and raised more than $120 million. The public caution tracks how the former president handled the weeks between Biden맥스카지노s debate debacle against Trump and the president맥스카지노s eventual decision to end his campaign: Obama was a in the party맥스카지노s maneuvers but he operated quietly.
Barack Obama맥스카지노s initial statement after Biden맥스카지노s announcement did not mention Harris. Instead, he spoke generically about coming up with a nominee to succeed Biden: 맥스카지노I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges,맥스카지노 the former president wrote.
Both Obamas campaigned separately for Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Biden in 2020, including large rallies on the closing weekends before Election Day. They delivered key speeches at the Democrats맥스카지노 convention in 2020, a virtual event because of the coronavirus pandemic. The former president맥스카지노s speech was especially notable because he unveiled a full-throated attack on Trump as a threat to democracy, an argument that endures as part of Harris맥스카지노 campaign.
