by By
In an exclusive interview with NBC News’ Andrea Mitchell, Vice President Kamala Harris said she hopes President Biden will run for re-election and said she intends to be his running mate again.
When asked about Democrats worrying behind the scenes that both Biden and Harris are on the ticket, the vice president responded: “Joe Biden…has said he intends to run for re-election as president and I have the intend to run with him for vice president. President of the United States.”
Harris dismissed those talks as “talk” from Washington.
“I think it’s very important to focus on the needs of the American people and not on the political chatter of Washington, DC,” he said.
In the interview, conducted at the Munich International Security Conference in Germany, Harris was asked about comments made by former UN ambassador Nikki Haley, who announced her campaign for president earlier this week.
Haley, who called for “a new generation” of leaders, did not directly mention Biden or former President Donald Trump, both of whom are in their 75s. But Harris said the message got through.
“I think it’s a very coded language,” Harris told Mitchell.
“What I know from traveling our country is that the American people want leaders who will look at what’s going on in their lives and create a solution.”
“In Joe Biden, we have a president who is probably one of the boldest and strongest American presidents we have ever had in his response to the needs of the American people,” Harris continued.
Harris also referred to Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Florida Republican, who is expected to run for president in 2024.
Responding to a question about DeSantis’ push to change the way black history is taught, Harris responded: “Any push to censor America’s teachers and tell them what they should be teaching is in the best interest of our children. .. is, I think, with bad thoughts.”
He added: “The people who know our children are their parents and their teachers… and it shouldn’t be a politician who says what should be taught in our classrooms.”
CORRECTION (February 17, 2023 1:14 PM ET): An earlier version of this article misquoted Harris. He said that President Biden is “one of the boldest and strongest American presidents,” not the oldest.
