James Carville compares Biden’s exit from the presidential race to having an “infected wisdom tooth” removed

WASHINGTON (TNND) — Longtime Democratic strategist James Carville said Tuesday that Democrats are relieved by President Joe Biden’s decision to drop out of the presidential race, comparing it to having an “infected wisdom tooth removed.”

Vice President Kamala Harris was named the Democratic nominee after Biden announced in July that he would not run for re-election. That decision followed weeks of speculation from Democratic insiders that the president would be unable to effectively serve another term in the Oval Office.

Carville said in an appearance on the Pod Save America podcast that Biden’s departure was akin to removing an infected tooth.

“I think it was clear that people just wanted something different,” the strategist said. “[It was] 72% wanted something different [and] 60% of Democrats did.”

“The analogy I would use is that when you have an infected wisdom tooth and it gets pulled out, you feel great,” he added. “You don’t feel any better than if you hadn’t had the wisdom tooth. The fact that the wisdom tooth is gone makes you think, ‘Man, I’m on top of the world now.'”

That euphoric feeling, Carville said, carried over into the Democratic Party’s support for Harris, who launched her presidential campaign shortly after she was endorsed by Biden. Although she was not originally among the party’s rumored top candidates to replace Biden, Carville said Harris has accepted the role well.

“The current level of talent in the Democratic Party is the highest level of political talent I have seen in my life,” he said. “Harris proved she was a lot better than people thought.”

She has become more confident,” Carville added. “She’s an adult.”

Biden received about 14 million votes in the 2024 Democratic primary. He repeatedly cited this number as justification for staying in the race.

Harris has never won a presidential primary, making her the first Democratic Party candidate to be nominated in this way. Former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called this trial a “coronation.”

However, Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California claimed in September that Harris was selected in an “open primary.”

We had an open primary and she won it,” the former House Speaker told Semafor. “Nobody else got into the running.”

“Yes, people could have stepped in, there were people who were kind of preparing,” she added. “[Harris] I just hit the ground running and it was actually a blessing because there wasn’t that much time between then and the election.”

Representative Pelosi made a similar claim earlier this month, arguing that the vice president won an “open process” to become the nominee.

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