Joe Biden is expected to announce his running mate next week, and Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) says Biden had better pick a black woman.
“Let me guarantee you this, based on everything that I know and understand, and the help that he has already gotten from the black community … he can’t go home without a black woman being VP,” the California Democrat said in a Friday town hall with Essence.
“We’re going to have a Black woman VP,” she declared.
Biden has been toying with the media over his upcoming choice. On Saturday, Biden, out on a bike ride, was asked by a reporter if he had picked a running mate.
“Yeah, I have,” Biden said. When the reporter asked, “Who?” Biden quipped “you.”
Here is the video… https://t.co/aFv10lufrb pic.twitter.com/1jHIsF9vPi
— Johnny Verhovek (@JTHVerhovek) August 8, 2020
Biden has reportedly narrowed his pick to two candidates – Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) and former Obama adviser Susan Rice, according to Axios.
The Democratic National Convention begins a week from Monday, and presidential candidates routinely pick their running mates before the quadrennial gatherings.
The jockeying is getting intense. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer reportedly traveled to Delaware last weekend to meet with the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. “Whitmer visited Biden Sunday, according to two high-ranking Michigan Democrats who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly,” The Washington Times reported.
Michigan was a key state in 2016, with President Trump pulling out a surprise victory over Hillary Clinton. Choosing the state’s governor as a running mate might give Biden a leg up in the state this time around.
Biden said last week he’s ready.
“I’ve narrowed it down, and I’ll be ready to make that announcement,” Biden said in an interview at a virtual convention of the National Association of Black Journalists and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists that aired Thursday. “You’ll find out shortly.”
Biden, who claims he wants his running mate “to be ready to be president on day one,” is also considering another black woman, Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA), who has been the representative for the state’s 37th congressional district since 2013. Born and raised in Los Angeles, the 66-year-old began her community activism while in middle school, when she volunteered for Bobby Kennedy’s presidential campaign.
Tony Coelho, a former California lawmaker, has been pushing Bass hard to the Biden camp, the California Globe reports.
“According to a highly placed source in Sacramento, Coelho, whose 10-year stint included many atop the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, has been in close contact with the Bass camp. The source told the Globe that Coelho told another person that ‘Biden’s folks told Bass it’s her or Duckworth.'” But Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) has been dropping in the betting odds of late.
Here are the latest odds set by bookies.com, based on a $100 bet (with last week’s odds in parentheses):
Sen. Kamala Harris -167 (-200)
Susan Rice +275 (+275)
Val Demings +1200 (+2000)
Tammy Duckworth +1200 (+1000)
Karen Bass +1700 (+1200)
Michelle Obama +2000 (+1400)
Sen. Elizabeth Warren +1400 (+1400)
Gretchen Whitmer +4000 (+3300)
Keisha Lance Bottoms +5000 (+3300)
Michelle Lujan Grisham +6600 (+5000)
Stacey Abrams +6600 (+5000)