Jill Biden would be expected to campaign for the administration as the First Lady.
However, it was announced this week that she will be heading the "Women for Biden-Harris" program, something we would generally think would fall to Harris.
Talking Points…
- Jill stepping on toes
- Women for Biden-Harris
- Analysis
I have stated several times already that I fully expect Jill Biden to be on the campaign trail far more than we will see Joe Biden stumping. Joe has proven over time that when he works long days and has a lot of travel, he gets exhausted, and that is when he starts to make horrible mistakes and gaffes, something he absolutely cannot afford to have happen right now.
So, Jill Biden will be out there hitting the campaign trail to prop Joe Biden up. Most of us already believe that Jill is among the people behind the curtain calling the shots during this administration, but taking over a program that seems like it should be a Harris duty has to be perceived as a sleight by Kamala Harris.
Harris has taken the lead on other "get out and vote" programs, so it was shocking to see the announcement that Jill Biden will lead the Women for Biden-Harris program. This will obviously concentrate on signing up more women voters in order for them to pull the handle for Joe Biden. To that point, Jill touted the program, stating:
"Women put Joe in the White House four years ago, and women will do it again.
"In our communities, women are the organizers, the planners, the mobilizers. We get things done. That's exactly why we're launching 'Women for Biden' now because when women organize, we win."
Biden campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodriguez added:
"Americans will face a real choice at the ballot box this November between Joe and Kamala who will stand up and fight for women and their freedoms each and every day, and Donald Trump who is looking to take our rights and freedoms away.
"Republicans have underestimated the power of women time after time and together, this November, we will make sure that they never make that mistake again."
This is a very important demographic for Joe Biden, as he had a margin of 11% in the 2020 election. With Biden bleeding minority voters right now, he cannot afford to lose the women's vote as well.
I want to go back to the 2020 debate season here, which is when Kamala Harris insinuated Joe Biden was a racist regarding her comments about busing. According to the backroom reports, Jill Biden was livid after that line of attack, going off privately about Harris and "how dare she" take that line of attack against her husband.
Regardless of what these two say publicly, there is bad blood between them, and this is Jill Biden stealing some thunder away from Kamala Harris. This should have been Harris' baby if the White House had any confidence in her, but handing this program over to Jill says quite a bit, at least in my opinion. We are clearly in the midst of a power struggle between Jill and Kamala, and so far, it would appear that Jill is getting the win.
