California Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters says Joe Biden “can’t go home" without selecting a Black woman as his running mate.
In remarks made at an Essence magazine virtual town hall on Friday, the outspoken Waters said the benchmark for a vice presidential pick in 2020 is a foregone conclusion.
“Let me guarantee you this, based on everything that I know and understand, and the help that [Biden] has already gotten from the Black community… he can’t go home without a Black woman being VP,” Waters said. “We’re going to have a Black woman VP.”
The frontrunners include Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., as well as former national security adviser Susan Rice, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif.
Biden is expected to reveal his pick for vice president next week. He has already committed to picking a woman as his running mate.
Waters said voters should honor civil rights legend Georgia Rep. John Lewis by exercising their right on Election Day.
“We have a responsibility to vote,” Waters said at the virtual town hall. “We can’t have people going around talking about how wonderful John Lewis was, how much he sacrificed, the beatings that he took, the way that he put his life on the line and we don’t get up and vote. There is no excuse."
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