California Gov. Gavin Newsom, while campaigning for President Biden in the battleground state of Pennsylvania over the weekend, was asked about his own prospects should the Democratic incumbent exit the race.
A longtime top Biden campaign surrogate, Newsom has rallied behind the president’s re-election bid, making stops in Michigan and Pennsylvania in recent days. Yet his own name has been floated as a potential replacement for Biden should the 81-year-old president step aside and allow for an open convention, when Democratic delegates convene in Chicago next month to formally decide their nominee.
At an event in Doylestown, Pa., on Saturday, Newsom said a second term for former President Trump would equate to “America in reverse” and touted the Biden-Harris administration’s record on the economy.
On the heels of a disastrous debate performance for Biden, one reporter asked the California governor afterward, “If it comes to an open convention, will you run?
“No, I mean it’s not even…” Newsom began. Interjecting, the reporter pressed: “Absolutely not?”
NEWSOM DOUBLES DOWN ON SUPPORT FOR BIDEN IN MICHIGAN: ‘I BELIEVE IN HIS CHARACTER’
“That’s not even, it’s to me, it’s the hypothetical that gets in the way of progress in terms of promoting this candidacy,” Newsom said.
“That’s a legit question, but it’s exactly where the other party wants us to be is having this internal fight,” Newsom added. “And I think it’s extraordinarily unhelpful. Said that literally the second after the debate. It was my first public comments. So I’ve been consistent in this belief, not just privately, but publicly.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom greets supporters during a campaign event for President Joe Biden on Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Doylestown, Pa. (Joe Lamberti for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Newsom’s swing through the battlegrounds came following a private meeting between Biden and Democratic governors hosted at the White House on Wednesday.
Biden is facing…
