So much for “party unity.”
According to Retribution, a forthcoming tell-all by ABC’s Jonathan Karl, Barack Obama was left stunned and seething after former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi broke a behind-the-scenes pact and rushed to endorse Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee—just hours after Joe Biden bowed out of the 2024 presidential race.
Pelosi publicly called Harris “brilliantly astute” and said she had “full confidence” the vice president could defeat Donald Trump. But behind the scenes, the sudden coronation didn’t sit well with Obama. Karl writes that the former president wanted senior Democrats to “let a process unfold” instead of handing the nomination to Harris on a silver platter.
A Pelosi confidant told Karl, “The Obamas were not happy,” summing up Obama’s reaction to Pelosi’s move as, “What the f** did you just do?”*
It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. Obama and Pelosi had quietly agreed not to back anyone too early. Both reportedly feared that skipping a competitive primary would make the party look desperate and undemocratic. But Pelosi—ever the power player—jumped ship. When Obama confronted her by phone, she brushed him off with a blunt, “That train has left the station,” pointing to Biden’s own rapid endorsement of Harris.
Sources differ on just how angry Obama was. One ally insists it was “good-natured ribbing,” while another close to Pelosi described him as “genuinely irritated.” Either way, the damage was done—and Democrats were once again proving that “chaos” might as well be their middle name.
Karl elaborated on MSNBC’s Morning Joe that Obama and Pelosi had made a “pact” to allow some form of mini-primary before backing Harris. The two had even worked together to convince Biden to bow out. Yet within hours of Biden’s announcement, big names like Josh Shapiro, Gretchen Whitmer, and Gavin Newsom lined up behind Harris, leaving Obama fuming on the sidelines.
Pelosi may have hesitated for a day, but by the time the tide turned, she saw no point in resisting. As Karl writes, “The only thing she could do was try to help her win the election.”
Obama, notably, waited five full days before offering his endorsement—a hesitation that many in Washington read as a lack of confidence in Harris’s ability to take on Trump.
