Joe Biden nears final decision on VP
Joe Biden nears his final decision on a running mate. Yahoo Finance's Rick Newman discusses.
Video Transcript
- Well, Joe Biden still has not chosen a running mate. Despite promises that that decision was coming imminently, it still hasn't happened. Rick Newman, what's going on here? And is this a problem for him that it sort of keeps getting pushed back?
RICK NEWMAN: It seems like a problem now. And I'm one of the people who's sick of talking about it, frankly. My guess is that, once we know who it is-- and it really better come this week, because he's already beyond his supposed August 1st deadline-- I think it will not be a problem, assuming it's not a controversial pick. I continue to say I'll be very surprised if it's not Kamala Harris.
We can go through some of those other possibilities if you guys want to talk about it, but she just seems like the most obvious choice. She's well-known. She has been elected to national office. I think that's important. And she has been vetted by the public, in some manner, at least, because of her own presidential run. So I think for all the sort of phony drama around who his pick is going to be, I think it's going to be Kamala Harris. But who knows, maybe we'll have somebody more surprising to talk about in a day or two or three.
- Rick, I'll take your Kamala Harris and see you two Val Demmings. I'm curious, will he get a bump from this once it's out there?
RICK NEWMAN: You know, I doubt it. That usually does not matter very much, who the vice presidential pick is. Sometimes the strategy is to pick somebody from a state you really need to win, but that doesn't always work. You know, the one possible difference here is, if Obama does choose a Black woman, which seems quite plausible, it could help with Black turnout, which is very important in this election.
If Black turnout in 2016 had been the same as it was in 2012, when Obama got re-elected, Hillary Clinton probably would have won. So the Black vote here is really important. It could affect the outcome in November. And if it's Kamala Harris or another Black woman, that might help a little bit. But I think we should be careful about reading too much into the significance of this pick.
- Although Biden is, what-- is he the oldest-- would he be the oldest president if he won?
RICK NEWMAN: Yes, he would be the oldest. And that obviously raises the possibility that he'll be a one-term president, or perhaps something happens in his first term and the vice president needs to step in. So I think there's a little bit more concern this time than there is in-- than there has been in the past, which is why that vice president, probably a little bit more than usual, needs to be somebody who is seen to have leadership experience at the national level. Adam, I think that works against your call for Val Demmings. And it needs to be somebody the public knows and is going to be comfortable putting into the White House.
