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CNN Anchor Jake Tapper ripped President Biden Sunday for what he described as a “nonsense” claim during a recent conversation with reporters that Vice President Kamala Harris could have beaten President-elect Donald Trump.
“Okay, first of all, do I think Kamala would have beaten Trump? She ran against him and lost, so that doesn’t make sense,” Tapper said during the “State of the Union.”
Biden told reporters Friday that his decision to withdraw was more about unifying the party, saying, “And I think Kamala could have beaten Trump, she would have beaten Trump.” according to media. Biden has said several times that he believes would have won a general election against Trump.
“I think he was trying to back off after spending the last few months basically putting her down,” the CNN anchor added.
CNN’s Jake Tapper criticized President Biden on Sunday for claiming that Kamala Harris could have beaten Trump in the election. (Screenshot/CNN)
Biden’s former communications aide Kate Bedingfield appeared to defend the president, saying she was likely trying to congratulate Harris for running a strong campaign.
“I think she would have beaten Trump, she could have beaten Trump. And I think Kamala could have beaten Trump, she would have beaten Trump. It wasn’t about… I thought it was important to unify the party. And “When the party was worried about whether I was going to be able to move or not, I thought that even though I thought I could win again, I thought it was better to unify the party,” Biden told reporters on Friday.
Bedingfield called Tapper’s analysis unfair, saying, “I think what he was trying to do there was acknowledge that she ran a strong race, that he was proud of her. That’s how he articulated it.”
President Joe Biden speaks at a reception for new Democratic members of Congress in the State Dining Room of the White House, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
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When asked in a USA Today Interview If he would have won if he had not withdrawn on July 21, Biden responded: “It’s presumptuous to say that, but I think so.” USA Today summarized that he continued “adding that he based that opinion on polls he had reviewed.”
Harry Enten, CNN polling professor He said Biden’s claims were nonsense.
“Based on polling data, I categorize Biden’s claim that he could have beaten Trump as ‘completely crazy,'” Enten wrote in a Wednesday “Biden never led in all of 2024. And no sitting president who was as unpopular as Biden has ever won.”
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“Why do I say his claim is totally wild that he could have won the 2024 election if he had stayed in the race? Just take a look here,” Enten added.
He then showed poll numbers from the time Biden dropped out of the race, particularly in the key Great Lake states, where “Donald Trump was ahead in all three.”
Fox News’ Alexander Hall contributed to this report.
