Every Democrat is wooing Obama — and Biden is reportedly 'upset'
Just about every Democrat weighing a 2020 run has been meeting with former President Barack Obama — apparently much to former Vice President Joe Biden's chagrin.
Obama has already met with tons of 2020 contenders including Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas), former Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). These meetings have been going on for months, per Politico, and even Democrats who have only dipped their toes in the 2020 pool want to arrange sit-downs with the 44th president; Politico reports that Sen. Sherrod Brown's (D-Ohio) staff hopes to schedule a meeting with Obama, even as Brown himself says he is "not convinced" he wants to run yet.
This is all apparently rubbing Obama's former vice president the wrong way, as Vanity Fair reports that Joe Biden is "upset" that Obama has been meeting so frequently with his potential Democratic primary rivals. A spokesperson for Biden refuted this characterization, calling it "unequivocally false." The report goes on to note that Obama is looking to avoid a situation like 2016, where Hillary Clinton was widely seen as the presumed Democratic presidential candidate long before the primaries even started.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
“So his position this time is, 'If you're serious and you want to talk, I'll talk to you,'" a former Obama adviser told Vanity Fair. "As things unfold, he might say, 'Let's all stay focused.' But he's not going to pick a winner."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
Starbucks workers are planning their ‘biggest strike’ everThe Explainer The union said 92% of its members voted to strike
-
‘These wouldn’t be playgrounds for billionaires’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
The 5 best nuclear war movies of all timeThe Week Recommends ‘A House of Dynamite’ reanimates a dormant cinematic genre for our new age of atomic insecurity
-
Has Zohran Mamdani shown the Democrats how to win again?Today’s Big Question New York City mayoral election touted as victory for left-wing populists but moderate centrist wins elsewhere present more complex path for Democratic Party
-
Senate votes to kill Trump’s Brazil tariffSpeed Read Five Senate Republicans joined the Democrats in rebuking Trump’s import tax
-
Border Patrol gets scrutiny in court, gains power in ICESpeed Read Half of the new ICE directors are reportedly from DHS’s more aggressive Customs and Border Protection branch
-
Shutdown stalemate nears key pain pointsSpeed Read A federal employee union called for the Democrats to to stand down four weeks into the government standoff
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
