Rice praises Harris after veepstakes: ‘She’s going to make a tremendous running mate’
Former national security adviser Susan Rice on Wednesday hailed California Sen. Kamala Harris as a “great choice” to become Joe Biden’s running mate.
Her remarks represented a new show of party unity after the former vice president’s protracted search process saw Rice emerge as one of Harris’ most formidable rivals for the No. 2 spot on the Democratic presidential ticket.
“She’s going to make a tremendous running mate for Joe Biden. I’m very confident that the Biden-Harris ticket will be a winning one, which is what our country so needs right now,” Rice told NBC’s “Today” show.
“I’m glad that I’m going to be able to support them and do my utmost to help elect Biden-Harris, and help them govern when the time comes,” she said.
Rice, who served as President Barack Obama’s U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and National Security Council chief, had reportedly surged in recent weeks to the top tier of candidates under consideration to be named as Biden’s vice presidential nominee.
Rice’s prospects were bolstered by her decades of executive branch experience, fluency in foreign affairs and personal rapport with Biden forged during their time as Obama administration colleagues.
But President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign reportedly favored Rice’s potential selection, hoping to exploit her role in crafting certain Obama-era policies and alleged involvement in a “deep state” conspiracy Trump has claimed the previous administration perpetrated against him.
Biden ultimately named Harris as his running mate Tuesday, elevating a rising star of the Democratic Party with a law enforcement background and a track record of successive statewide wins in California.
In her interview Wednesday morning, Rice insisted she was not disappointed by Biden’s decision. “I am happy to have been part of this process. I’m honored and humbled to be among an extraordinary group of women who were considered,” she said.
Rice added that she will “do everything I possibly can to help Joe Biden become the next president of the United States and to help him succeed in governing, in whatever form or fashion he wants. So, I’m ready to serve.”
But pressed on whether she and the former vice president discussed her serving in another capacity in a potential Biden administration, Rice demurred. “I’ll let Joe Biden answer that question, but let me say I’m proud to serve him in any way he’d like,” she said.
