Biden says Kamala Harris is ‘qualified to be president’
Washington, Jul 12: US President Joe Biden on Thursday said his deputy, Vice President Kamala Harris, is "qualified" to lead the country.
At a high-stake press conference here on Thursday, Biden said, “From the very beginning, I made no bones about that. She is qualified to be the president. That's why I picked her.”
When asked about the reasons for this, he said “Firstly because of the way she's handled the issue of freedom of women's bodies, to have control of their bodies and secondly, her ability to handle almost any issue on the board.”
“This was a hell of a prosecutor. She was a first-rate person and in the Senate, she was really good. I wouldn't have picked her unless I thought she was qualified to be the president,” Biden said.
Harris, 59, is the first woman, the first Black American, and the first South Asian American to be elected as US Vice President in 2020.
Biden's remarks on Harris came amidst growing calls for the 81-year-old to step aside from the race for the White House in November since he stumbled through a TV debate with his Republican rival Donald Trump last month.
The president mistakenly referred to Kamala Harris as former president Trump during the press conference. He said, “I wouldn't have picked Trump to be the vice president, did I think she was not qualified to be president….”
“The fact is that the consideration is that I think I'm the most qualified person to run for president. I beat him once and I will beat him again,” Biden said.
“The idea that senators and congressmen are running for office worrying about the ticket is not unusual. And I might add, there were at least five presidents running or incumbent presidents who had lower numbers than I have now later in a campaign,” he said.
So, there's a long way to go in this campaign and so I'm just going to keep moving, Biden, the presumptive candidate of the Democratic Party, said.
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American Airlines plane catches fire at Denver airport gate. Passengers evacuated on slides
Denver (AP): An American Airlines plane caught fire after landing at Denver International Airport on Thursday, prompting slides to be deployed so passengers could evacuate quickly.
Flight 1006, which was headed from the Colorado Springs Airport to Dallas Fort Worth, diverted to Denver and landed safely around 5:15 p.m. after the crew reported engine vibrations, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.
While taxiing to the gate, an engine on the Boeing 737-800 caught fire, the FAA added.
Photos and videos posted by news outlets showed passengers standing on a plane's wing as smoke surrounded the aircraft. The FAA said passengers exited using the slides.
American said in a statement that the flight experienced an engine-related issue after taxiing to the gate. There was no immediate clarification on exactly when the plane caught fire.
The 172 passengers and six crew members were taken to the terminal, airline officials said.
No injuries were reported.
“We thank our crew members, DEN team and first responders for their quick and decisive action with the safety of everyone on board and on the ground as the priority,” American said.
Firefighters put out the blaze by the evening, an airport spokesperson told media outlets.
The FAA said it will investigate.
The country has seen a recent spate of aviation disasters and close calls stoking fears about air travel, though flying remains a very safe mode of transport.
