Democratic strategist Paul Begala took aim at “pain-in-the-ass white liberals on Twitter” for being potential roadblocks to President Joe Biden’s reelection. (Watch the video below.)
Begala, a CNN contributor, debated former presidential and New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Yang on the network Tuesday over Biden’s viability to win again in 2024.
Yang, a former Democrat who became an independent, said if Biden did run, he likely wouldn’t face primary challenges from mainstream Democrats but would from more progressive hopefuls. He said that one potential challenger, former Bernie Sanders national campaign surrogate and defeated congressional candidate Nina Turner, could receive “significant support.”
Yang also suggested Biden would shrink from debates and questioned his vigor during the 2020 primary process. “All of a sudden he developed it,” Begala snapped back.
Begala, who helped orchestrate former President Bill Clinton’s winning presidential campaign in 1992 and advised a super PAC that helped get former President Barack Obama reelected in 2012, launched an impassioned defense of Biden.
“You’re missing the most important thing, Andrew,” Begala said. “The early states are full of white liberals. They don’t like Joe. Then when we move to real Democrats, African Americans in the south, they loved him and he steamrolled everybody. Because in my party, the heart and soul of the party are people of color, not pain-in-the-ass white liberals on Twitter. I’m sorry to use bad language.”
About 9 in 10 Black voters cast their ballot for Biden in the 2020 election. Black voters’ support for Biden dipped since he took office, but remains relatively high. A recent NPR-Marist poll found that 71% of Black voters approved of Biden’s job performance, vs. 43% of white voters and 39% of Latino voters.
Biden’s overall approval rating among Democrats is 87%, according to the poll.
h/t Mediaite