|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Just hours after U.S. President Joe Biden announced his decision to withdraw from the presidential race, Peninsula politicians rallied to endorse his replacement atop the Democratic ticket, Vice President Kamala Harris.
Harris is well known in the region, having served as the San Francisco district attorney before California voters elected her to attorney general in 2010. State Sen. Josh Becker recalled hosting fundraisers for her when she was running for the attorney general position, which she held until 2017, when she was elected to the U.S. Senate.
Becker said in an interview Monday that he became acquainted with Harris when he was running the Full Circle Fund, a nonprofit that supported social entrepreneurship in education and climate change. She attended Full Circle Fund events and supported its efforts, he said.
He said he was impressed by both her “warmth” and her “savvy,” qualities that weren’t always on full display during her term as vice president.
“The vice president is a tough role. You’re not there to really stand out,” Becker said in an interview. “But the biggest thing for me is her warmth. I remember when I ran in 2010 for the Assembly and lost, she called me and left me this very uplifting voice mail that I kept for a very long time.
“To me that’s an example of warmth and caring. And she has a good sense of humor that many people haven’t quite gotten to see in her vice president role.”
Assembly member Marc Berman said he “could not be more excited” about Harris, particularly when contrasted with Donald Trump.
“She was a prosecutor for her career. She was the top cop of California. Former President Trump is a 34-count felon,” Berman said in an interview. “It could not be more stark, the difference between those two candidates.”
Berman said he believes Harris is also the perfect person to represent “the chasm that exists on policy between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party.”
“Whether you’re talking about climate change, whether you’re talking about bodily autonomy for women and the right to abortion, whether it’s science or anti-science — on every issue there is a massive gap between Democrats and Republicans and I think Vice President Harris will hammer that home over the coming days.”
U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-16, said in an interview that she has seen “enormous energy and excitement” not just in her district but across the country in the 24 hours since Biden withdrew from the race and endorsed Harris to be the Democratic nominee. She pointed at the long list of governors, chief executives and other dignitaries across the nation who have already endorsed her.
“I think she will prosecute the case very well, just as she did as a prosecutor in San Francisco, just as she did as a prosecutor as an attorney general in the state of California, just as she did in the Judiciary Committee when the nominees of the Trump administration for the Supreme Court appeared before her,” Eshoo said in an interview.
The two candidates who are running to succeed Eshoo in the U.S. Congress similarly expressed their support for Harris on social media. State Assembly member Evan Low said that the vice president “will protect a woman’s right to choose while Trump will continue to take away reproductive freedoms.”
“The contrast for voters can’t be more clear,” Low said in a statement on X. “The stakes are too high. Kamala Harris is the right choice for this moment.”
His opponent in the race, former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, was also quick to endorse Harris.
“From the time I first met @KamalaHarris as a fellow Bay Area criminal prosecutor two decades ago, I’ve seen the indefatigable courage, compassion, and skill that our nation needs in this perilous moment,” Liccardo said in a statement on X. “I expect an open and robust process to select our next Democratic presidential nominee, but I’m proud — as I was five years ago — to support Vice President Harris as our next President.”
U.S. Rep. Kevin Mullin, D-15, released a statement lauding Biden’s decision. Mullin, who endorsed Harris during her 2020 campaign for president, said in a statement that Kamala Harris being at the top of the Democratic ballot “demonstrates that Democrats are poised to represent where America is going, not where it has been.”
He said he “wholeheartedly” endorses her to succeed Biden and lead the Democratic ticket.
“Kamala Harris can draw significant contrasts with Trump, and prosecute the case for why we must win,” Mullin said. “She will take the fight directly to Trump. She will ensure we keep the White House in Democratic control and will help us win back a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.”
Harris also won support from the most powerful Democrat in Congress, U.S Rep. Nancy Pelosi. The former House speaker issued a statement on Monday endorsing the vice president.
“My enthusiastic support for Kamala Harris for President is official, personal and political,” Pelosi said in a statement.
“Officially, I have seen Kamala Harris’s strength and courage as a champion for working families, notably fighting for a woman’s right to choose. Personally, I have known Kamala Harris for decades as rooted in strong values, faith and a commitment to public service. Politically, make no mistake: Kamala Harris as a woman in politics is brilliantly astute – and I have full confidence that she will lead us to victory in November.”
Pelosi and other state and national politicians were also quick to express their gratitude to Biden for leaving the race.
“President Joe Biden is a patriotic American who has always put our country first. His legacy of vision, values and leadership make him one of the most consequential presidents in American history,” Pelosi posted on X.
“With love and gratitude to President Biden for always believing in the promise of America and giving people the opportunity to reach their fulfillment,” Pelosi said.
Eshoo said Biden’s decision puts his patriotism on “full display.”
“His legacy of bringing us through the ravages of the pandemic, rebuilding our economy, and defending democracy at home and abroad will make him one of the most consequential presidents in American history,” Eshoo said in a statement.
Berman said in an interview he had looked up to Biden ever since he started paying attention to national politics as a college student. At one point, he had hoped to work for Biden, Berman said.
“President Biden has sacrificed for all of us time and time again,” Berman said. “This is another instance of that, where he’s putting his personal interests aside for what is best for the country.”
Harris posted on social media Sunday afternoon thanking Biden for his “extraordinary leadership” following his announcement that he will not run for reelection, adding that she intends to run for nomination as the Democratic presidential candidate in the upcoming November election.
“On behalf of the American people, I thank Joe Biden for his extraordinary leadership as President of the United States and for his decades of service to our country. I am honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination,” Harris wrote.
Meanwhile, all day Sunday across the Bay Area, the state and the nation, public officials reacted to the news that Biden will not seek reelection.
“President Biden has been an extraordinary, history-making president — a leader who has fought hard for working people and delivered astonishing results for all Americans. He will go down in history as one of the most impactful and selfless presidents,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, concluding, “Thank you, @JoeBiden.”
San Francisco Mayor London Breed praised both Biden’s performance as president and his decision to not run for reelection.
“He came into a time of great peril for our democracy, in the midst of a once-in-a-century pandemic, and he had the courage, wisdom and vision to stabilize our nation … President Biden has given his entire life to public service and this country, and once again he is showing what it means to put his country first,” Breed posted on X.
Bay City News Service contributed to this report.