At Ethel Kennedy’s funeral on Wednesday, President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama were caught on camera seemingly discussing Vice President Kamala Harris’ election chances, according to a professional lip-reader hired by the New York Post.
In the video, Biden can be heard telling Obama that “she” is “not as strong” as him, to which Obama responds, “that’s true.” The outlet suggests that the conversation is about Harris’ chances in the upcoming election.
But the White House was quick to dismiss the lip-reading claims, with spokesperson Andrew Bates telling the New York Post, “A ‘lip reading expert’? Did your usual right-wing soothsayer have their out-of-office up?
Only President Biden and President Obama know what they discussed, but this certainly wasn’t it.” Even former Biden White House officials, who are now working on the Harris campaign, denied the claims, saying that it is “not even like [Biden] to say that” and urging the outlet to get “a new lip reader.”
However, this is not the first time Biden has expressed confidence in his own abilities to defeat President Trump in the election. In July, after dropping out of the presidential race, Biden appeared on “The View” and said that polls showed he was still able to beat Trump and that he even believed he could beat the former president if he was still in the race.
He also admitted to not fully believing the claims that there was an overwhelming reluctance for him to run again, and instead, suggested that some people just wanted a chance to move on.
But Harris’ reputation among voters seems to be taking a hit, with her negative rating increasing four points in just one month, according to MSNBC national political correspondent Steve Kornacki.
And journalist Mark Halperin, speaking on Oct. 8, claimed that he had seen new private polling that showed Harris was “in a lot of trouble.” He went on to say that both Trump’s supporters and Democrats with access to data were feeling “extremely bullish” on Trump’s chances in the last 48 hours. Halperin also pointed out that Harris is in danger of losing key battleground states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona, North Carolina, and Georgia.
JUST IN: The New York Post says a professional lip reader caught Obama agreeing with President Biden that Kamala is "not as strong" as he is.
Obama assured Biden, however, that they "have time" according to the Post
Biden: "She’s not as strong as me."
Obama: "I know… that’s… pic.twitter.com/H5DANASJ3x
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) October 17, 2024
It seems that the more voters learn about Harris and her policies, the less they support her. Her favorability ratings have dropped and she is now facing trouble in key battleground states. Biden, on the other hand, continues to express confidence in his abilities but the reality is, he may just be in denial. As noted by the lip-reader, even Obama seemed to agree that Harris is not as strong as Biden.
https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/1846956246198325556/photo/1
If the two men who have worked closely with Harris are not convinced of her abilities, why should the American people be? It is clear that Trump still has a strong chance of winning this election, especially now that Harris’ weaknesses are being exposed.