US Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign team has reportedly been ignoring President Joe Biden’s attempts to support her in the final days leading up to the November election, Axios reported on Monday, citing several sources familiar with the situation.
The president had reportedly set aside several days in order to campaign with Democratic candidate Harris, although her team did not schedule any joint events, according to the outlet.
The Harris campaign has responded to Biden’s attempts to get involved with messages of “we’ll get back to you,” sources claimed to Axios.
The arms-length dynamic supposedly stems from Harris’ belief that the 81-year-old president is a “political liability at a crucial time in the campaign,” according to the outlet. However, her team is reluctant to state that directly or to publicly refuse Biden’s attempts to campaign for her.
One source told the outlet that the situation between Biden and Harris is comparable to a “slow-moving break-up.”
“Harris’ team and allies respect Biden’s service, but are wary of further tying Harris to the unpopular president on the campaign trail,” Axios reported. “He’s a reminder of the last four years, not the new way forward,” one source told the outlet.
Biden dropped out of the presidential race earlier this summer after a widely panned debate performance against Republican rival Donald Trump in June. Since then, the president’s approval rating has dropped to 39%, according to a Gallup poll conducted in early October.
Last week, an off-the-cuff Biden comment sparked a backlash from the Trump campaign, after he called for the Republican candidate to be incarcerated. “I know this sounds bizarre. If I had said this five years ago, you’d lock me up, but we’ve got to lock him up,” Biden said, accusing the former president of trying to use his immunity and powers to “physically eliminate someone he believes is a threat to him.”
Biden later clarified that he wanted to “politically lock up” Trump, but his comments nevertheless drew condemnation from the former president and other Republicans, who have long accused the Biden administration of weaponizing the Justice Department to go after his rival. Earlier this year, a Manhattan jury found Trump guilty on 34 charges related to alleged hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels and the January 6, 2021 Capitol riots
Biden’s statement also “frustrated” some Harris aides, according to Axios.
Despite the situation, the outlet reported that many on Biden’s team believe that the aging president can still help Harris secure victory, and that his pull among certain voters is being underestimated.