Biden, still smarting from his 2024 exit, turns his attention to Harris – and his own legacy

President Joe Biden is still smarting from having been forced to abandon his reelection campaign more than three weeks ago.

President Joe Biden is still smarting from having been forced to abandon his reelection campaign more than three weeks ago and has made clear to those close to him that he was particularly unhappy with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, with whom he has not spoken since his decision to abandon his candidacy.

Sources stopped short of using the word “grudge” – but said Biden would not soon forget those who appeared to be most active in pushing him aside. While he has appreciated the warm embrace of Democrats following his decision, there have also been moments of eye-rolling after public tributes from certain party members who most actively tried to push him from the race.

The process that led him to exit the campaign left the president alternately embittered and relieved, according to people familiar with his mindset, who say Biden is still processing the events that led to his ouster as the Democratic standard bearer even as he firmly believes that he made the right choice. Another source familiar with the matter said that Biden was unhappy at the time, but “is not spending time ruminating” about it.

White House spokesman Andrew Bates disputed the characterization that Biden was still dwelling on his unhappiness with Pelosi, saying it was “not accurate” and that the president’s attention is “on the future, not the past.”

While the 81-year-old president holds some regrets about how it unfolded, Biden is now also enlivened by the opportunity to burnish his legacy without having to run a bruising campaign against former President Donald Trump.

And if Biden harbors any lingering hard feelings, he has been clear about one thing: He holds no hard feelings toward his vice president, Kamala Harris, who has swiftly replaced him atop the Democratic ticket.

Biden has told people he is proud of both how Harris rose to the occasion to replace him on the ticket and how the party rallied behind her — in no small part because he quickly endorsed her as his chosen successor.