*Supporters of Joe Biden are roasting Kamala Harris for accusing the former vice president of being a racist during the Democratic debate last week.
“She played low ball, which was out of character. And he didn’t expect it, nor did I,” said Lee White, a Black supporter of Biden who attended his speaking engagement at the Jesse Jackson Rainbow PUSH Coalition. “She should not have gone that route. She’s much too intelligent, she’s been able to be successful thus far, why do you have to do that.”
Another supporter from California, who asked to remain anonymous, said Harris’ attack on Biden will ultimately haunt her, per politico.com. “It’s going to bite her in the ass. Very early on there was buzz … Biden-Kamala is the dream ticket, the best of both worlds.’’ After this week, “That sh*t ain’t happening.”
As noted by Politico, criticism of Kamala reflects the loyalty that many still feel toward Biden, who continues to receive support from his financial backers. Joe reportedly bagged $1 million after two fundraisers in San Francisco this weekend, according to the outlet.
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As we previously reported, Harris had harsh words for Biden’s record on racial segregation during the Democratic primary debate last Thursday night. She criticized his opposition to busing to desegregate schools.
“There was a little girl in California who was part of the second class to integrate her public schools and she was bused to school every day,” she said to Biden. “That little girl was me.”
Harris’ campaign later tweeted out merchandising of a t-shirt featuring a photo of the congresswoman as a young girl.
Meanwhile, several Biden loyalists have pointed to his lifelong advocacy on civil rights.
“We can be proud of her nonetheless, but her ambition got it wrong about Joe,” said former Illinois Sen. Carol Moseley Braun, who has endorsed Biden in the 2020 primary. “He is about the best there is; for her to take that tack is sad.”
Sam Johnson, a Columbia, S.C.-based public affairs consultant who has not backed a 2020 candidate, accused Harris of “desperately overreaching.”
“I don’t think a lot of folks are saying, ‘well, there’s a lot of credibility of her going after Biden,’” said Johnson, who has not backed a 2020 candidate. “I don’t think it was received by the majority of folks as an attack that is going to move the needle. Most folks aren’t looking at that as something where, hey, ‘Biden was against civil rights carte blanche.’”
“It was planned, and it was staged and it was rehearsed — and they were ready to raise money on it,’’ another Bay Area Biden supporter said of Harris’ low blow.
Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown says Biden has no one to blame but himself for his seemingly unprepared performance. “They better hope she would accept [a VP nomination],’’ he said. “Otherwise, he’s a guaranteed loser.”
Former San Francisco Supervisor Leslie Katz defended Kamala’s debate tactics.
“She was giving him a chance to address the issues that would plague him. … She was gracious, and she personalized it: She said she didn’t think he was a racist,’’ Katz said. “What stunned me was that he wasn’t prepared for that topic, and he needs to figure that out, sooner rather than later.”
In related news, Harris slid into second place in a new national poll from CNN, with Joe Biden still leading.
The CNN/SRSS poll was released on Monday and conducted after the first two Democratic presidential primary debates last week. Harris has inched up to second place, with 17 percent. Biden still sits at the top of the pack with 22 percent.
