PoliticsJill Biden Confesses Nancy Pelosi's Role in Husband Joe Biden Ending His 2024 Election Campaign Was 'Disappointing' After 50-Year Friendship
Jill Biden said she was 'disappointed with how it unfolded' while talking about Joe Biden's campaign.
Jan. 15 2025, Published 6:20 p.m. ET
First Lady Jill Biden admitted she was unhappy with the pressures her husband, President Joe Biden, faced to step down from his 2024 election campaign.
During a recent interview, the 73-year-old said she was "disappointed with how it unfolded" and noted the situation taught her "a lot about human nature."
First Lady Jill Biden has been friends with Nancy Pelosi for decades.
After she was specifically asked about longtime congressmember Nancy Pelosi, 84, who is rumored to have played a "key role" in his decision to end his campaign, Jill replied: "I’ve been thinking a lot about relationships."
"It’s been on my mind a lot lately," she added. "We were friends for 50 years. It was disappointing."
Nancy Pelosi reportedly pushed Joe Biden to end his 2024 reelection campaign.
Back in July 2024, the president announced his decision to suspend his campaign and endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for the job following months of concerns about his physical and cognitive health.
However, after the VP, 60, lost to Donald Trump, 78, last November, the former House Speaker suggested if Joe had "gotten out sooner," there may have been an open primary and Kamala could potentially have come out as a "stronger" candidate.
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President Joe Biden suspended his campaign and endorsed Kamala Harris in July 2024.
"That didn’t happen. We live with what happened," she said at the time. "And because the president endorsed Kamala Harris immediately, that really made it almost impossible to have a primary at that time. If it had been much earlier, it would have been different."
She also said she'd "never been that impressed" with Joe's "political operation" in an August 2024 sit-down with The New Yorker‘s David Remnick.
"They won the White House. Bravo. But my concern was: this ain't happening, and we have to make a decision for this to happen," she noted. "The President has to make the decision for that to happen."
Nancy Pelosi suggested if Joe Biden had ended his campaign earlier, Kamala Harris may have been more successful.
As OK! previously reported, he 82-year-old POTUS addressed the rumors that his own party had allegedly "forced his hand" during a September 2024 appearance on The View.
"I never fully believed the assertions that somehow there was this overwhelming reluctance to my running again, I didn’t sense that," he explained. "There were some folks who would like to see me step aside so they have a chance to move on. I get that. That’s just human nature. But that wasn’t the reason that I stepped down."
Jill spoke with The Washington Post about her friendship with the former House Speaker.
