Joe Biden is set to give his final bow tonight at the Democratic National Convention, but it seems he's already halfway out the door. According to reports, he is still "stunned and pissed" about being forced out, and has no intention of hanging around to watch Kamala Harris's coronation.
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Biden is said to be heading off for a six-day vacation in California, conveniently skipping out on Kamala’s big moment on Thursday. And he won’t be there for former President Barack Obama’s speech either.
Joe Biden will look out at an adoring crowd from the podium at Monday night’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago and try his best to hide the bitterness he still feels about the betrayal by some in his own party.
Assured of an emotional sendoff as he passes the torch to his vice president, Biden is “still stunned and pissed about the way he was pushed out of his re-election race,” the president’s friends told Axios.
Biden loyalists see the sudden superstardom of Kamala Harris among the previously dubious party faithful as “an even more brutal rejection of Biden,” according to the report.
And it is not just the party leadership that Biden feels betrayed by. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has spoken of her hopes their 50-year friendship can be repaired after he felt she played a major role in his ousting, and the manner of Biden’s departure has sorely tested his relationship with Barack Obama.
But the president and his stalwarts are still fuming over his treatment, both from the media and from within the party.
It's no secret that Biden isn't happy about how he was forced out. The palace coup was orchestrated and carried out by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Barack Obama, and House Speaker Hakeem Jeffries. According to past reports, Biden was blackmailed into dropping out via the threat of the 25th Amendment being invoked.
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Granted, Joe Biden going on vacation is pretty on brand for him, as he's spent roughly 40% of his presidency on vacation, but the optics of him leaving what was supposed to be his party are hard to ignore.
It’s no secret that Biden’s been nursing a grudge ever since Obama pushed him aside in 2016 to make way for Hillary Clinton—and let’s be honest, Joe hasn’t exactly been thrilled with her for losing to Trump either. It’s also clear Joe isn’t too happy about being sidelined yet again.
Joe Biden reportedly endorsed Kamala as part of his revenge against them.
Biden will talk the talk tonight about beating Trump and unity and all that, but it's all smoke and mirrors. Biden may be passing the torch, but he got burned in the process, and it won't surprise me one bit if his loyalists get their ultimate revenge somehow. Joe has long maintained that he is the only Democrat who can beat Trump. According to Axios, "They know that the best thing for Biden's place in history is for her to win." But I would argue that her losing might reinforce what Biden has claimed all along.
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