‘California Mafia’ plays puppet master in ousting Biden and elevating Harris
By
Barnini Chakraborty
July 22, 2024 3:45 pm
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The cruelest cut for President Joe Biden came at the hands of California Democrats who were the driving force behind his decision to abandon his reelection bid, relentlessly applying pressure to pass the torch to someone they believe could beat former President Donald Trump in November.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was widely seen as one of the grandees working behind the curtain to oust Biden, while her protege, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), was one of the most prominent Democrats to call on Biden to withdraw.
By midday Monday, Pelosi and Schiff, dubbed the “California Mafia,” had endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, another California Democrat, for the top of the ticket.
‘Fingerprints are all over the knife’
House Democrats who had concerns about Biden’s ability to win looked to Pelosi to deliver the kill shot to the president’s sagging reelection campaign following a disastrous debate performance.
Not only is the Capitol Hill veteran respected by colleagues in both parties, Pelosi’s steely, no-nonsense attitude was the jolt some believed Biden needed to pull out of the race.
“That’s why some of us are going to Pelosi,” one House Democrat told Axios. “She’s a tough cookie. She’ll tell you like it is.”
Another called her a “f***ing power-broker.”
Politico put it bluntly: “We’ve covered Pelosi for a long time now and can tell you her fingerprints are all over the knife.”
Another Democrat said Pelosi “made clear that they could do this the easy way or the hard way.”
“She gave them three weeks of the easy way. It was about to be the hard way,” the person said.
Pelosi was part of a group of “super friends” made up of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senate President Pro Tempore Patty Murray (D-WA), Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).
Their goal was to make the case to whomever they could at the White House that Biden needed to step aside.
The group not only pushed for Biden’s exit, but it also wanted to end the perception that the Democratic Party is fractured heading into the high-stakes election in November, when control of Congress is also up for grabs.
Several California Democrats in swing districts also got in line, saying they feared a landslide loss in the election that could drag down House and Senate Democrats.
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https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/presidential/3094325/california-mafia-puppet-master-ousting-biden-elevating-harris/
