Harris says she’s prepared to be president ‘if necessary’

Vice President Kamala Harris has said she’s prepared to be president “if necessary,” though she brushed off concerns about President Biden’s age as the pair campaigns for a second term. 

CBS News’s Margaret Brennan asked Harris in an interview for “Face the Nation,” set to air this Sunday, to respond to concerns from both sides of the aisle about Biden’s age.

Brennan asked Harris if she is prepared to be commander in chief.

“Yes I am, if necessary. But Joe Biden is going to be fine,” Harris said. The vice president stressed that she works with Biden “every day” and lauded the administration’s work under his leadership. 

Biden’s octogenarian status has brought reelection bid critiques from the right and worries from within the Democratic party about his health as he vies for another four years in the Oval Office. If he wins in 2024, Biden would be 82 when he takes office, and Harris would be 60.

Harris’s dismissal of the concerns about Biden’s age are in line with remarks she gave to The Associated Press in a recent interview, when she was asked if she feels prepared for the possibility of stepping into the presidential role if necessary.

“Yes,” Harris said, but she went on to add: “I’m answering your hypothetical, but Joe Biden is going to be fine, so that is not going to come to fruition.” She stressed that responsibility is on every vice president who takes office.

Brennan during the CBS News interview brought up remarks from Republican presidential candidates honing in on Harris along the campaign trail — including comments from Nikki Haley that “a vote for Joe Biden is a vote for Kamala Harris” and from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis that “Harris is Biden’s impeachment insurance.”

“We’re delivering for the American people. And the reality of it is that, unfortunately, very few of those who challenge our administration actually have a plan for America,” Harris said in response, going on to tout figures on the administration’s successes. 

“They’re honing in on you. Why do you think that is? How do you respond to those attacks?” Brennan pressed the vice president. 

“Listen, this is not new. There’s nothing new about that … They feel the need to attack because they’re scared that we will win based on the merit of the work that Joe Biden and I, and our administration, has done,” Harris said.