A former Kamala Harris adviser shocked a CNN panel on Sunday with a wild proposition: Joe Biden should resign the presidency and allow Kamala Harris to reign as the first woman president.
Ex-Harris communications director Jamal Simmons told his fellow State of the Union panelists the move would save Harris from the unfortunate reality of certifying her defeat to Donald Trump on Jan. 6 in her role as president of the U.S. Senate. The idea had been floated as a humorous suggestion on social media.
“It would make sure that it would dominate the news at a point where Democrats have to learn drama and transparency and doing things that the public would want to see at a time—this is the moment for us to change the entire perspective of how Democrats operate," Simmons said.
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Fellow panelists were floored with “Woah”s and “Wow”s, with Democratic strategist Ashley Allison looking at Simmons with bewilderment and regular firebrand Scott Jennings giggling at the thought and joking that Simmons should write for House of Cards.
Simmons stuck true to his guns, however, and joked that the move would ruin Trump’s “47″-branded merchandise. It would also accomplish two goals: make it easier for a woman to run for president without the historical weight and allow Biden to stay true to his role as a “transition” president.
“This is something that’s in Joe Biden’s control,” Simmons said. “And if he did it, it would, again, it would fulfill his promise, his last promise.”
Host Dana Bash laughed that the idea was even floated on the table at all.
“This has now jumped from an internet meme to a Sunday morning talk show,” Bash said. “Congratulations.”
Simmons doubled down in a series of X posts after the show. “Dems have better policies but we must realize the old rules no longer apply. We are not playing table tennis,” he wrote. “We are in a mixed martial arts fight and Americans respond to drama and excitement. We should use that to make our arguments for a better path forward.”
