Pizza With Anchovies and Pounding the Phones in a Howard University Hoodie: How Kamala Harris Spent Her First Night as the Dems’ Likely ’24 Candidate
Insiders who worked with Harris said she was loathed by her own staff.
July 22 2024, Published 7:04 a.m. ET
The Kamala Harris express has left the station.
The vice-president gorged on pizza with anchovies while wearing her alma mater Howard University hoodie and sweats in the hours after Joe Biden told her he was quitting the ticket in a political earthquake that effectively paves the way for a Harris-Donald Trump showdown at the ballot box, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Harris, 59, had multiple phone conversations with Biden before he announced at 1:46 p.m. on Sunday he was stepping aside, sources confirmed.
She then turned her ear to more than 100 Democratic leaders — speaking to each of them via phone — over a span of 10 hours in a makeshift campaign war room inside the Vice President's Residence and Office at Number One Observatory Circle in northwestern Washington, D.C.
A Beltway insider told RadarOnline.com: “Kamala moved swiftly to crush any potential opposition to her candidacy undertaking what is very unglamorous but necessary work.”
Harris received President Joe Biden’s “full endorsement” on Sunday.
David Axelrod, who was the chief strategist for Barack Obama, said the would-be Democratic nominee’s “impressive shock and awe campaign” had shored up her position.
He posted to X: “A lot of big dominos have fallen, including almost all of the major, potential contenders who might have challenged her.
“Hard to see any other outcome here than her nomination.”
On Monday morning, the only potential contender to Harris was Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who was said to be considering rejoining the Democratic Party to vie for the presidential nomination.
Sen. Joe Manchin, who caucuses with the Democrats but who had recently changed his party affiliation to independent, is considering throwing his hat into the ring.
Front-runner Harris had won the support of a majority of House Democrats — 153 — to start her week, with most Senate Democrats —32 — and twelve of the nation’s 23 Democratic governors following suit.
Polls also showed some positive signs for Harris, whose political pedigree includes becoming the first female, Black and South Asian attorney general in California history in 2010.
In NBC News’ latest national poll, conducted more than a week after Biden’s dismal debate performance but before the assassination attempt on Trump, Harris trailed Trump by 2-point margins among registered voters.
Similarly, a post-debate national Fox News poll found Trump ahead by 1 point against Harris (Trump 49%, Harris 48%) among registered voters.
A national CBS News/YouGov poll of likely voters conducted after the assassination attempt found Trump leading Harris by 3 points, 51% to 48%.
In New York Times/Siena College battleground polls of Pennsylvania and Virginia, Harris also performed 2 points better than Biden among likely voters in the two states.
Former President Trump claimed that President Biden is a “threat to Democracy” who “never had Covid” after the 81-year-old commander-in-chief dropped his bid for reelection Sunday.
As we previously reported, Biden stepped aside from the Democratic ticket after a brutal 25-day revolt from top Democrats.
While he endorsed Harris and declared it was time for the Democrats “to come together” in a bid to beat Trump, the scandal of Biden’s cognitive decline and the White House's cover-up of the issue hasn’t abated.
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Top Republicans joined Trump and running mate JD Vance in demanding Biden leave the Oval Office immediately and called on Harris to invoke the 25th Amendment.
The amendment allows the vice-president to become acting president when a president is unable to continue his duties, if, for example, he or she becomes incapacitated due to a physical or mental illness.
President Biden sent political earthquakes through the Beltway by dropping out of the 2024 race.
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But speaking exclusively to RadarOnline.com, a top campaign source warned Republicans to be “careful” about “jumping all over the 25th Amendment” for fear it could backfire.
Our insider said: "Invoking the 25th Amendment would allow Kamala Harris to effectively audition as president.
"Donald Trump's hopes of regaining the White House best rest with keeping Biden in it, and his incompetence will eventually stain Kamala Harris too.
"Having Biden in the White House until election day also serves as a constant reminder about how she helped cover-up his obvious health issues!"
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