Chris Cuomo has claimed that Joe Biden privately acknowledged deliberately undermining Democrats during the 2024 election as retaliation against party figures who had pressured him to end his reelection campaign. Cuomo has not publicly identified the people he says heard Biden discuss the matter.
The claim comes amid continuing debate over the Democrats' 2024 election defeat, when Donald Trump defeated then-Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump won all seven major battleground states and secured 312 electoral votes, compared with Harris' 226.
Biden's campaign came under mounting pressure after his widely criticised debate with Trump on June 27, 2024. His halting delivery and difficulty completing some answers prompted concern among Democratic lawmakers, donors and other party figures.
Biden ultimately ended his reelection bid on July 21 and endorsed Harris shortly afterwards.
Chris Cuomo's Claim About Biden
Cuomo made the allegation on the Sept. 24 episode of The Chris Cuomo Project. The host said he believed Biden was angry that Democrats did not want him to seek another term and claimed the former president had 'submarined the whole thing.'
'He was so pissed that they didn't want him to run again, that I believe he submarined the whole thing,' Cuomo said. 'I believe he forced Harris on them, I believe he delayed it, I believe he screwed up the process, I believe he wanted to punish them for not letting him run again. I really believe that.'
Cuomo alleged that Biden effectively forced Harris on the party after withdrawing from the race. However, the documented record shows that Biden endorsed Harris and encouraged Democrats to unite behind her. Cuomo's allegation that Biden deliberately manipulated the nomination process has not been independently established.
The former president's endorsement did not itself make Harris the Democratic nominee. Harris subsequently secured the nomination after Biden ended his campaign, with Democratic delegates formally backing her in the weeks that followed.
Cuomo said his belief that Biden still privately acknowledges undermining the Democrats was based on people he had spoken to who, he claimed, had heard Biden discuss the matter in private. He did not identify those people or provide documentary evidence to support the allegation.
Former President Biden, 83, has not publicly responded to Cuomo's claim.
Pressure on Biden to Withdraw
The sequence of events following Biden's debate performance is well documented. His appearance was followed by growing calls from Democrats for him to leave the presidential race.
Texas Rep. Lloyd Doggett was the first congressional Democrat to publicly call on Biden to withdraw. By July 21, 31 House Democrats and four Senate Democrats had publicly called for him to exit the race, according to CBS News. The totals reflected the position at that point in the campaign and should not be treated as a permanent count.
Biden announced on July 21, 2024, that he was ending his reelection campaign. About 30 minutes later, he endorsed Harris for the Democratic nomination, writing that he was offering her his 'full support and endorsement.' He also urged Democrats to unite behind her.
Harris later became the Democratic nominee and selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate. The pair subsequently lost all seven major battleground states to Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Former first lady Jill Biden later said she was 'frightened' while watching the debate and thought her husband might be having a stroke. She did not say that he had suffered a stroke, and the comment does not establish that he experienced one.
Allegation Remains Unverified
Cuomo's assertion differs from the documented sequence of events, in which Biden faced mounting pressure from Democratic allies after his debate performance before ending his campaign on July 21.
The public record establishes that Biden withdrew and endorsed Harris, but it does not establish Cuomo's allegation that he deliberately undermined the Democratic ticket or sought to punish party figures.
The available inf also does not demonstrate that Biden delayed the nomination process or intentionally damaged Harris' campaign. Those propositions come from Cuomo's interpretation of what he says he heard from unnamed people, rather than from publicly identified witnesses or documents.
The allegation also raises questions about the distinction between Biden's documented actions and Cuomo's interpretation of them. Biden did withdraw from the race and endorse Harris, but those decisions alone do not prove that he intended to harm the Democratic Party or influence the election outcome against it.
Cuomo's comments have nevertheless added a new layer to the continuing post-election debate. The 2024 result prompted scrutiny of Biden's age, the timing of his withdrawal, the party's nomination process and the decision to place Harris at the top of the ticket after a compressed campaign.
If independently corroborated, Cuomo's allegation would offer a substantially different account of Biden's motivations during the final weeks of his campaign. It would suggest that his decision-making was influenced not only by pressure over his candidacy but also by anger towards Democratic leaders.
At present, however, there is no independent evidence in the material cited to support that interpretation.
For now, Cuomo's account remains unverified and is based on unnamed people he says heard Biden discuss the 2024 election privately.
