Insiders and advisors close to former President Obama are increasingly aligning with Vice President Harris as she gears up for a showdown against former President Trump this coming November.
With under 100 days left, Harris is working to energize voters behind her campaign after President Biden’s withdrawal, which raised significant concerns about his mental fitness and age of 81. The DNC confirmed on Friday that Harris has officially secured the 2024 presidential nomination for her party, having received the majority of votes from convention delegates.
Following Biden’s exit, Harris is actively assembling her campaign team, notably incorporating numerous advisors and insiders from Obama’s circle.
Recently, Harris appointed David Plouffe as a senior campaign advisor; Plouffe previously oversaw Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign and was a senior aide during Obama’s successful 2012 re-election. Stephanie Cutter was also recruited as the senior advisor for strategy messaging, known for her role as deputy campaign manager for Obama’s 2012 run.
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Vice President Harris and former President Obama (Getty Images)
Harris also brought Mitch Stewart on board as a senior advisor for battleground states, after his experience as a grassroots strategist in both of Obama’s campaigns, as reported by the Washington Post. Meanwhile, David Binder, who has long collaborated with Harris, is expanding his role to oversee the campaign’s polling team, having previously been involved with Obama’s public opinion research.
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Additionally, veteran Democratic operative Jennifer Palmieri has been brought on as a senior advisor for Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff. Palmieri’s past roles include serving as White House communications director during the Obama administration and director of communications for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign.
Jennifer O’Malley Dillon, White House deputy chief of staff, and Jake Sullivan, White House national security adviser (Getty Images)
Harris also previously enlisted Eric Holder, Obama’s former attorney general, to oversee the vetting of her potential running mates, while Jennifer O’Malley Dillon, who acted as deputy campaign manager in 2012 for Obama and chaired Biden’s 2024 re-election campaign, has been announced as Harris’ campaign manager.
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Vice President Harris (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
In recent weeks, the 44th president had been rather reserved before finally endorsing Harris’ presidential campaign. Typically, Obama has kept his support under wraps after leaving the Oval Office; he only officially endorsed Hillary Clinton in June 2016 and backed Biden just days before the Democratic National Convention in 2020.
Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama publicly endorsed Harris in a recent video.
“I can’t have this phone call without saying to my girl Kamala: I am proud of you. This is going to be historic,” Michelle Obama stated during the video while addressing Harris.
“We called to say that Michelle and I couldn’t be prouder to endorse you and will do everything we can to support you through this election and into the Oval Office,” former President Obama remarked.
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Michelle Obama (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Harris, who also campaigned for the presidency in 2020 before transitioning to Biden’s running mate, shares a longstanding friendship with Obama dating back to before her federal political career.
She was one of the first Democratic officials to back Obama during his initial bid for the presidency in 2008, choosing him over Hillary Clinton.
Harris attended Obama’s presidential announcement in 2007, having first met him in 2004 when he was running for the U.S. Senate.
“Barack Obama will be a president who finally ends the era of fear that has been used to divide and demoralize our country,” Harris remarked during California’s Democratic convention in 2008.
As her political journey progressed from San Francisco district attorney to California attorney general and ultimately to senator, some analysts began to refer to Harris as “the female Obama.”
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President Obama greets then-California Attorney General Kamala Harris and then-Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom in San Francisco on Feb. 17, 2011. ( Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
Harris became the Democratic nominee for president following Biden’s departure from the race after his underwhelming debate performance against Trump in June, where he struggled to maintain coherence and appeared more withdrawn than usual. This incident led to increasing concern from Democrat allies and the media about Biden’s cognitive abilities and age.
Despite repeated denials from the White House and Biden’s team about his potential drop-out, Biden eventually took to Twitter to announce that he was exiting the race, citing a desire to complete his remaining time in the White House.
Before Biden’s withdrawal, significant voices among Obama’s allies had pushed for the president to concede the race in favor of a candidate deemed more competitive against Trump.
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Former chief campaign strategist David Axelrod remarked last month that Biden was “not winning this race.” Meanwhile, actor George Clooney urged Biden to exit the race in an eye-catching op-ed a short time after co-hosting a fundraiser with Biden and Obama in Los Angeles. Clooney shares a close friendship with the Obamas and has vacationed with them in previous years.
Former President Obama and Vice President Harris (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Another Obama ally, Jon Favreau, who previously served as director of speechwriting for Obama, also called for Biden to withdraw last month, describing his observations from the fundraiser in L.A. where he saw Biden’s state firsthand. Favreau, along with former Obama advisors Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor—the trio known as the “Obama Bros” during their White House tenure—dedicated most of a podcast episode of “Pod Save America” in June to critiquing Biden.
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On Tuesday, Harris announced her choice for running mate, Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota. Together, they are expected to head to Chicago this month for the Democratic National Convention as the election cycle approaches its final stages.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
