Jim Clyburn is the one who elected Joe Biden. Here’s how he already helped Kamala Harris. | Opinion
There is no President Joe Biden without Rep. Jim Clyburn so it was fitting that the two both took the stage Monday night as the four-day Democratic National Convention kicked off in Chicago to celebrate Kamala Harris as their party’s new presidential nominee.
“For President Biden’s lifetime of achievement, his service of his country, we owe him a great debt of gratitude,” Clyburn told an appreciative DNC crowd during a five-minute address. “And we are all grateful for one of the best decisions he made, selecting Kamala Harris as his vice president and endorsing her to succeed him.”
You can’t tell President Biden’s story without telling Clyburn’s — from Biden’s reversal of political fortune four years ago to Biden’s reluctant decision not to seek re-election four weeks ago.
Now you can’t tell Harris’s story without telling Clyburn’s.
Even before Clyburn helped paint a picture Monday of Harris as ready for the presidency during his prime-time speech, he was one of her biggest ambassadors on her quick ascension as the party’s nominee.
One of the ways Harris and Clyburn are alike is their loyalty to Biden. As other Democrats were saying why Biden shouldn’t be the nominee after his disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump in late June, Harris defended him on CNN immediately after, saying Biden had a “slow start” but a “strong finish.” Clyburn said that same week that there was “no better Democrat” to communicate the party’s message than Biden.
Such fealty was, of course, demonstrably wrong. Biden’s verbal stumbles and lost trains of thought showed he wasn’t up to the challenge of a campaign, let alone four more years of service at the highest level. And as pressure mounted on Biden to quit the race, the messaging from Clyburn shifted in subtle but significant ways.
A few days later, Clyburn told MNBC’s Andrea Mitchell, “No, this party should not, in any way, do anything to work around Ms. Harris. We should do everything we can to bolster her, whether she’s second place or at the top of the ticket.”
That statement from the politician who more than anyone helped elect Biden to the White House helped Harris build support and momentum as she quickly navigated her way to being the nominee. It quieted talk of a mini primary and speculation about other contenders to replace Biden.
Clyburn wouldn’t be as responsible for a Harris victory as he was for Biden’s, but his forcefulness and faith in her, the way he suggested that it was her turn and that she was most qualified, brought to mind what he did in 2020.
South Carolina’s most influential Democrat endorsed Biden just three days before the Palmetto State’s 2020 primary and changed the course of the election. It propelled Biden to victory after a dismal fourth-place finish in Iowa, a dreadful fifth-place finish in New Hampshire and a distant second-place finish in Nevada. Here’s the story behind it.
The day before Clyburn endorsed Biden was the day of a candidate debate. And the day before that, Clyburn made what the 2021 book “Lucky: How Joe Biden Barely Won the Presidency” by NBC’s Jonathan Allen and The Hill’s Amie Parnes called a political “ask” — “the favor a politician requests in return when he is granting one” — of Biden.
“Find a way to say that you were a part of picking the first Latina woman member of the United States Supreme Court and you’re looking forward to making the first African American woman a member of the United States Supreme Court,” Clyburn told Biden the day before the debate.
Yet a full hour and 45 minutes into the debate at a Charleston concert hall, Biden had not promised to appoint a Black woman to the Supreme Court. Clyburn rushed backstage in a commercial break, found Biden and cautioned him privately, “I’m telling you, don’t you leave the stage tonight without making it known that you will do that.”
The rest is history.
In his closing remarks, Biden said, “I’m looking forward to making sure there’s a Black woman on the Supreme Court, to make sure we in fact get every representation.”
He got Clyburn’s endorsement. He sewed up the nomination. He became president.
He nominated Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court.
And then on Clyburn’s 84th birthday, Biden announced he would not seek re-election.
Four years ago, Clyburn addressed the 2020 Democratic National Convention and made the case for Biden, saying, “Joe Biden is as good a man as he is a leader. I have said before and wish to reiterate tonight: We know Joe. But more importantly, Joe knows us.”
Monday, Clyburn argued for Harris, reiterating something else he’d said: “In the introduction of my memoir, I wrote, ‘All my experiences have not been pleasant, but I consider all of them to be blessings.’ So has been the case with Kamala. Her experiences have prepared her for this moment. Kamala Harris is a true battle-tested leader, a district attorney, attorney general, senator and vice president who gets things done.”
Below is the full text of Clyburn’s remarks to the Democratic National Convention on Monday night.
“Four years ago, Americans were experiencing high anxieties and grave uncertainties. Back then the virus raged, schools closed, businesses shuttered, Donald Trump mismanaged the crisis from day one, looking out for himself instead of the country.
“The American people responded to the crisis in leadership by electing new leaders.
“Thanks to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, we reopened our schools, brought back our businesses and restored our faith in Americans’ can-do spirit. Thanks to Joe and Kamala, we reduced the price of prescription drugs, repaired roads and bridges and replaced lead pipes. Thanks to Joe and Kamala, we are honoring our heroes in uniform and expanding benefits to over a million veterans. Thanks to Joe and Kamala, make it in America is no longer a slogan but a movement that is bringing millions of manufacturing jobs back to America.
“For President Biden’s lifetime of achievement, his service of his country, we owe him a great debt of gratitude. And we are all grateful for one of the best decisions he made, selecting Kamala Harris as his vice president and endorsing her to succeed him.
“I often say that we are but the sum of our experiences. In the introduction of my memoir, I wrote, “All my experiences have not been pleasant, but I consider all of them to be blessings.” So has been the case with Kamala. Her experiences have prepared her for this moment. Kamala Harris is a true battle-tested leader, a district attorney, attorney general, senator and vice president who gets things done.
“While Donald Trump has been bragging about how he overturned Roe, Kamala has been fiercely advocating for the restoration of reproductive freedoms. While Trump has been looking out for himself and his billionaire buddies, Kamala Harris has been fighting to lower costs for all Americans. And while Trump falsely pleads ignorance of Project 2025, which in my opinion is Jim Crow 2.0, Kamala has been offering the American people enlightening proposals and visionary leadership.
“Having grown up in a parsonage, I often look to the good book for understanding and guidance. As Second Corinthians informs, “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed. We are perplexed but not in despair, persecuted but not forsaken, cast down but not destroyed.
“Our great democracy has been tested and so has the basic goodness of the American people. But our resolve to remain a great country with freedom and justice for all will not falter. We will continue our march toward a more perfect union, united in our common purpose and emboldened by our resolve to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz as the next president and vice president of these United States of America. Thank you and Godspeed.”
This story was originally published August 20, 2024 at 6:06 AM.