Stacey Abrams says presidential candidate Joe Biden has not reached out to her about the vice president position.
What We Know
- The former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, said she has “not received any calls” from his campaign, even though she has blatantly been pushing for the position.
- “I have said many times that if called, I will answer, but I have not received any calls,” Abrams told Stephen Colbert on “The Late Show” on Wednesday. She also stated she is looking forward to speaking to whomever April Ryan is speaking to, referring to the CNN analyst that was cited saying Abrams was being vetted for the position.
- When Colbert asked about her brazenness with pushing for the position Abrams stated she was typically asked about her qualifications for the job on account of her race. “I know that when I’m asked the question are you qualified, can you do this, that I’m not just answering for myself. I’m being asked the question because I don’t look like what people usually look like when they’re considered for these jobs,” Abrams said.
- Abrams said being a black girl, raised in Mississippi she learned:“If you don’t speak up for yourself, that people will take that as permission to underestimate you. It gives them permission to underestimate everyone who looks like you.”
- The former leader of the Georgia State House said in April, “I have the capacity to attract voters by motivating typically ignored communities. I have a strong history of executive and management experience in the private, public and nonprofit sectors. I’ve spent 25 years in independent study of foreign policy. I am ready to help advance an agenda of restoring America’s place in the world. If I am selected, I am prepared and excited to serve.”
- Abrams is mostly known for narrowly losing the race for governor of Georgia to Brian Kemp in 2018. She repeatedly questioned the outcome of the race and refused to concede and accused then-Secretary of State Kemp of voter suppression.
Biden has already vowed to select a woman as his running mate and has said he plans to roll out his pick by Aug. 1. He’s received increased pressure to pick a woman of color, with activists saying he should note the role minority voters played in boosting his presidential campaign after early primary defeats and the ongoing protests over the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who was killed in police custody in Minneapolis.
