Paris Alston: This is GBH’s Morning Edition. The endorsements continue pouring in for Vice President Kamala Harris to win next month’s presidential nomination at the Democratic National Convention. Among the delegates pledging their support are 116 from Massachusetts, who voted unanimously to back her. Most of the state’s congressional delegation is voicing their support as well. That includes Senator Elizabeth Warren, who joins us now. Good morning, Senator. Thanks for being here.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren: Good morning. It’s a delight to be with you.
Alston: So we’ve been hearing from voters who are feeling much more energized about this election than they were even just a week ago. Are you feeling that shift in the Democratic Party as well?
Warren: Absolutely. People are saying this is what we want. We see a candidate now in Vice President Harris who is ready to go, ready to pull our party together, ready to take on Donald Trump toe-to-toe and ready to win in November. And that’s energized everyone.
Alston: Now, at the same time, it has not always been that way. Even last year on Boston Public Radio, you stopped short of a clear yes to supporting Harris and joining President Biden on the 2024 ticket. And it’s also worth noting that one of your congressional colleagues here in Massachusetts, Congressman Stephen Lynch, has not yet commented on her nomination. So what do you say to people who are still skeptical?
Warren: Kamala Harris is qualified uniquely to be president of the United States at this moment. You know, I have known Kamala for nearly 15 years, when she was the attorney general of California and I was setting up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. We were shoulder to shoulder, pushing back against the giant banks that were trying to cheat homeowners. She has led the charge to try to restore access to abortion and other health care services all across this country. And at a time when the Republicans have nominated a convicted felon, who better to take on that battle than a former prosecutor? Kamala Harris is the person for this moment. And unlike the Republicans who want to look backwards, or they still want to fight over the 2020 election, Kamala Harris is the one who turns the page and says, let’s go forward. Let’s build the country that we want, one that works not just for the billionaires, but works for everyone.
Alston: Now, you were on the campaign trail alongside the vice president in 2020. Of course, that was the year that we kept hearing that question of electability in terms of your own campaign. And here we are again with a really high potential for a woman, also a person of color, to become president. But is that electability still a question?
Warren: Look, I understand that people are anxious about this question. We thought we were past it and then found out we weren’t. But the way I see it right now is that the enthusiasm, the energy and the undeniable qualifications of Kamala Harris are going to bring us together at this moment to push back, to fight back against Donald Trump and the Republicans and their vision of America. Look at it this way: Ever since the Dobbs decision, how many women have come off the sidelines? How many women have come off the sidelines in Kansas and Michigan and all around the country to say, enough, I will get engaged in politics? Wasn’t my first choice. But that’s what I’m going to do, because I’m going to make sure my voice gets heard. And now again, we’re watching this big sweep of women and as I like to refer to them, friends of women, also known as men, who say, I’m going to get engaged. I’m going to help us have a president that we can be proud of, a president that we know will recognize rights and support rights not for just half the population, but for all the populations. So I’m really hopeful at this moment. The volunteers are signing up, the small dollar donations are coming in, and they’re all doing that to get behind a strong, focused, principled woman.
Alston: And there are —
Warren: So I think this is our time.
Alston: You mentioned the campaign donations that are coming in. We know that the vice president’s campaign has raised more than $100 million at this point, including $80 million of which was raised in the first 24 hours, the largest in presidential history. And 62% of those contributions came from first-time donors. What message do you think that sends not only to the Democratic Party, but to the Republicans as well?
Warren: I think this is a movement. This is grassroots, speaking up for who they want for president of the United States. Those small-dollar donations are a way to say, I support this, and I’m making a personal investment in helping Kamala Harris become the next president of the United States. This is the energy and the coming together that we need all across this country. And watching as it comes in, as it builds, as people talk about it and bring in their neighbors and bring in their friends. And I feel like it’s not only an opportunity for Democrats to win in November, it’s an opportunity for our country to come together and to begin to heal.
Alston: Senator, some Republicans, politicians, have been flagging potential legal issues with the vice president being able to access the campaign money that was raised for President Biden. Do you see for any issues with that?
Warren: No, I don’t, and I’ve talked with the lawyers about it, and they seem confident that this is just trying to raise more noise on the Republican side basically, cause they got pretty much nothing else.
Alston: Is that in line with everything that you have been doing to bring transparency to campaign finance rules?
Warren: Yes. I want to see more transparency in our rules. And of course, as you know, I’ve been fighting for a long time for more ethics rules for those who are in public service, particularly for our Supreme Court justices, who need to disclose more and who need to be prohibited from taking gifts and from deciding cases where they have obvious conflicts of interest.
Alston: So, Senator, I want to make the most of the time we have left with you here. We know that former Attorney General Eric Holder is reportedly vetting VP picks for the vice president in her presidential campaign. What’s factoring into that pick? And if given the opportunity to join her on the ticket, would you take it?
Warren: You know, Kamala Harris doesn’t need my advice on picking a VP. She’s been a VP for three and a half years, knows what’s involved in the job. I think she’ll do a great job. But I think the kind of VP she’s been is an important insight here. I think she’ll want the same kind of partner for herself that she has been to Joe Biden.
Alston: So is that a no to you joining? Yes or no to you joining the ticket, potentially?
Warren: Oh, not me. I think Kamala is going to pick someone that she wants to work with every day and that is ready to step into that VP slot spot. She’ll do great.
Alston: Well, that is Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren. Thank you so much for your time this morning.
Warren: Thank you for having me.
Alston: You're listening to GBH news.
The endorsements continue pouring in for Vice President Kamala Harris to win next month’s presidential nomination at the Democratic National Convention.
Among the delegates pledging their support are 116 from Massachusetts, who voted unanimously to back her.
Most of the state’s congressional delegation is voicing their support as well, including Senator Elizabeth Warren.
“Kamala Harris is qualified uniquely to be president of the United States at this moment,” Warren told GBH’s Morning Edition co-host Paris Alston Tuesday. “Kamala Harris is the one who turns the page and says, let’s go forward. Let’s build the country that we want, one that works not just for the billionaires, but works for everyone.”
Warren said she’s felt a shift in the Democratic party since Biden stepped down and Harris announced her candidacy.
“People are saying, ‘this is what we want,’” Warren said. “We see a candidate now in Vice President Harris who is ready to go, ready to pull our party together, ready to take on Donald Trump toe-to-toe and ready to win in November.”
Warren said she understood worries that some Americans won’t want to elect a woman.
But she said she is encouraged by seeing more women get involved in organizing, especially since the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, which removed federal protections for abortion.
“The way I see it right now is that the enthusiasm, the energy and the undeniable qualifications of Kamala Harris are going to bring us together at this moment to push back, to fight back against Donald Trump and the Republicans and their vision of America,” Warren said. “I’m really hopeful at this moment. The volunteers are signing up, the small dollar donations are coming in, and they’re all doing that to get behind a strong, focused, principled woman.”
The vice president’s campaign has raised more than $100 million at this point, including $80 million of which was raised in the first 24 hours, the largest in presidential history. And 62% of those contributions came from first-time donors.
Some Republican politicians, including Trump-appointed FEC Chairman Sean Cooksey, said campaign funds raised for the Biden-Harris campaign money will probably face legal challenges.
Warren said she was not concerned about the validity of those challenges.
“I’ve talked with the lawyers about it, and they seem confident that this is just trying to raise more noise on the Republican side basically, cause they got pretty much nothing else,” Warren said.
Former Attorney General Eric Holder is reportedly vetting VP picks for Harris’ potential running mate.
Warren said she is not interested in the post herself.
“Oh, not me,” she said. “Kamala Harris doesn’t need my advice on picking a VP. She’s been a VP for three and a half years, knows what’s involved in the job. I think she’ll do a great job.”