Kamala Harris Leaves Biden Off Top Presidents List

Joe Biden gave Kamala Harris the vice presidency.

He still couldn’t crack her top three.

Harris left her former boss off her list of America’s most effective presidents during a Friday appearance at the National Urban League conference, instead selecting Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and Barack Obama.

“In your view, rank the top three most effective presidents in American history,” National Urban League President Marc Morial asked.

Harris initially tried to dodge.

“Marc, don’t make me do that,” she joked.

But she did it anyway, beginning with Roosevelt and his expansive view of the federal government during the Great Depression.

Harris said she had recently watched an NPR special about FDR and highlighted his advocacy for expanding the Supreme Court, the creation of Social Security, and his belief that government should play a central role during moments of national crisis.

“It was he who talked about the expansion of the Supreme Court, and then he got ferocious back, kind of blowback for that,” Harris said. “But he did good.”

“When I think about what he did in terms of investing in the people during dire times and talking about the role and responsibility of government, that it should not just be about the benevolence of community organizations or just interpersonal relationships, that the government has a role,” she continued. “I think that he was a very important president.”

Harris next selected Kennedy, although she also gave credit to Lyndon B. Johnson for advancing Kennedy’s agenda after his assassination.

“I credit, you know, Kennedy, of course, in terms of what he laid the groundwork for and then Johnson followed up on,” Harris said.

She described the period as an example of an “inside outside game,” with activists applying public pressure to influence those holding power in Washington.

Her final choice was Obama, drawing applause from the audience.

Harris pointed specifically to the Affordable Care Act, arguing that Obama confronted a healthcare system that had failed Americans outside the wealthy elite.

“What he did with the Affordable Care Act among many things, but in particular, if we had one issue that has been ailing America for generations, which is a healthcare system that has failed anyone other than the rich and addressing that the way that he did and took a lot of heat for it,” Harris said.

“I think it’s one of the greatest presidents.”

Biden received no such endorsement.

Watch the clip above.

We did it, @JoeBiden. pic.twitter.com/oCgeylsjB4

— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) November 7, 2020