A key focal point of former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign for the Democratic Party’s 2020 presidential nomination has been his oft-repeated reminder to everyone that he proudly served alongside former President Barack Obama in the White House for eight years. However, despite Biden’s constant mention of Obama, there has been no reciprocation and Biden hasn’t received Obama’s highly-coveted endorsement for the presidency.
But Obama did just issue a “presidential” endorsement for somebody else: he offered his support to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as elections in the U.S. northern’s neighbor draw near, the Daily Caller reports.
“I was proud to work with Justin Trudeau as President,” Obama tweeted on Wednesday. “He’s a hard-working, effective leader who takes on big issues like climate change. The world needs his progressive leadership now, and I hope our neighbors to the north support him for another term.”
Obama snubs Biden
The Daily Caller reported that Biden has previously attempted to explain the lack of support from Obama as resulting from the VP’s request that the former president not endorse him in the Democratic primary
“I asked President Obama not to endorse and he doesn’t want to — whoever wins this nomination should win it on their own merits,” Biden told reporters in April.
But not everyone is buying Biden’s story.
Deafening silence
Indeed, the Daily Caller noted that Biden’s claim seems unlikely in light of key bits of information that have since emerged regarding Biden and Obama’s relationship.
The former president reportedly warned Biden and his advisers in March — as part of several in-person meetings prior to the launch of Biden’s campaign — to make sure that he didn’t do anything during the campaign that might “damage his legacy” and cast the former president in a bad light.
Similarly, Vanity Fair reports that Obama told Biden of his presidential bid: “You don’t have to do this, Joe, you really don’t.”
But Biden was said to have insisted on mounting the campaign anyway, apparently because he felt he needed to do everything he could to see President Donald Trump removed from office.
That’s gotta sting
To be sure, the stated reason for Obama’s withholding of an endorsement for any of the Democratic candidates is that he is waiting for the process to play out before weighing in and picking winners and losers too soon, according to CNBC.
But though Biden will likely never admit it, Obama offering up an endorsement for Trudeau in Canada — who has somehow completely skirted any real consequences for the emergence of multiple photos of him in “blackface” — is undoubtedly devastating on both political and personal levels. Sorry, Joe.