As details from the new book by Kamala Harris continue to emerge, the former vice president’s thoughts about her potential 2024 running mates have drawn reactions from the candidates not chosen. Former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg has responded to the idea that his sexuality played a role in Harris not picking him for the Democratic ticket.
Choosing Buttigieg as a running mate was ‘too big of a risk’
The Atlantic details in new excerpts from 107 Days, which recounts the truncated campaign Harris ran for president, that fellow Biden administration member Buttigieg was her “top choice” for running mate, complimenting him as “a sincere public servant with the rare talent of being able to frame liberal arguments in a way that makes it possible for conservatives to hear them.” Harris writes that Buttigieg “would have been an ideal partner—if I were a straight white man.” However, she says of her presidential campaign that “we were already asking a lot of America: to accept a woman, a Black woman, a Black woman married to a Jewish man. Part of me wanted to say, Screw it, let’s just do it. But knowing what was at stake, it was too big of a risk.” Though not directly stated, the implication given by Harris is that a ticket with a Black woman and an openly gay man would have been too hard a sell to voters. Harris indicates that Buttigieg understood the calculation. “And I think Pete also knew that—to our mutual sadness.”
Buttigieg disagrees with Harris; says Americans deserve ‘more credit than that’
Buttigieg has responded publicly to the discussion about him in the book, diverging from the perspective presented by Harris. In a video response posted by Politico, Buttigieg said, “I was surprised when I read that. I just believe in giving Americans more credit than that.” Buttigieg added, “My experience in politics has been that the way that you earn trust with voters is based mostly on what they think you’re going to do for their lives, not on categories, and I wouldn’t have run for president if I didn’t believe that.” Using the example of former President Barack Obama winning his home state of Indiana, a traditionally Republican-friendly state, Buttigieg said, “You just have to go to voters with what you think you can do for them.” ABC News reported that Harris didn’t discuss with Buttigieg the reason she didn’t choose him as her running mate, a position that ultimately went to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro reacts to description in Harris book
Elsewhere in her book, Harris also discusses another potential running mate, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. During the campaign, many pundits argued that Shapiro, a popular Democratic governor of a critical swing state, was the most prudent choice for vice presidential candidate. However, Harris indicates in her book that Shapiro acted presumptuously during their meeting over the role, and that she was concerned “that he would be unable to settle for a role as number two and that it would wear on our partnership.” Shapiro, who had publicly withdrawn from consideration as a vice presidential candidate ahead of Harris announcing Walz as her choice, responded to the discussion in Harris’s book. A spokesperson for the governor said that it is “simply ridiculous to suggest that Governor Shapiro was focused on anything other than defeating Donald Trump and protecting Pennsylvania from the chaos we are living through now.” He added that Shapiro “campaigned tirelessly for the Harris-Walz ticket — and as he has made clear, the conclusion of this process was a deeply personal decision for both him and the Vice President.”
Even before it has officially been released, 107 Days is continuing to create distance and even controversy between Harris and other prominent parts of the Democratic Party. With the book set to be released on Tuesday, expect more revelations from Harris and reactions from other politicians to the vice president’s unusually candid revelations.
