Former Vice President Kamala Harris has called it “recklessness” for Democrats to have left the decision about seeking reelection solely in President Joe Biden’s hands, even as she continues to defend his ability to govern.
In an excerpt from her upcoming book 107 Days, published Wednesday in The Atlantic, Harris reflects on the uncertainty that surrounded Biden’s 2024 reelection bid. At the time, the then-81-year-old president faced mounting doubts about his age and stamina, yet Democratic leaders ultimately deferred to him and First Lady Jill Biden to make the final call.
“Was it grace, or was it recklessness? In retrospect, I think it was recklessness,” Harris writes. Her comments mark the first time she has publicly criticized Biden’s choice to run again — a decision that unraveled after his disastrous debate performance led him to drop out in July 2024, forcing Harris to lead the Democratic ticket against Donald Trump.
“The stakes were simply too high,” Harris continues. “This wasn’t a choice that should have been left to an individual’s ego, an individual’s ambition. It should have been more than a personal decision.”
While she acknowledges Biden’s shortcomings, Harris defends his competence, stressing that even at his lowest point he was “more deeply knowledgeable, more capable of exercising judgment, and far more compassionate than Donald Trump on his best.” But she concedes that Biden’s age showed in moments of fatigue, pointing to his faltering debate performance after two grueling trips to Europe and a Hollywood fundraiser. “I don’t believe it was incapacity,” she insists, adding that she would have spoken out if she thought he was unfit to serve.
Harris also uses the book to criticize Biden’s inner circle, accusing them of undermining her to shield the president. She recalls feeling that his staff actively fed unflattering narratives about her vice presidential office — from stories of dysfunction to high turnover — and sought to diminish her public standing. According to Harris, this fear of her overshadowing Biden reached a peak after her speech in Selma, Alabama, where she called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. The speech went viral, but she says the West Wing reacted with displeasure. “I was castigated for, apparently, delivering it too well,” she writes.
Such efforts, Harris argues, only hurt Biden himself, especially amid persistent concerns about his age. Her success, she believes, should have been viewed as a reflection of his judgment and a reassurance to the public that she could step in if necessary. “My success was important for him,” Harris writes. “His team didn’t get it.”
107 Days — a reference to the length of her abbreviated presidential campaign — is set for release on September 23 by Simon & Schuster.
