In a very rare move, the State Department organized a press gaggle with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, creating an opportunity for him to address the recent Washington headlines.
ABC News asked Blinken for his reaction to President Biden’s decision not to seek another term and whether he saw Vice President Harris as an able replacement.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Yazidi activists at the State Department in Washington, D.C., July 23, 2024.
Michael McCoy/Reuters
“As you all know, I don’t engage in politics,” Blinken began, but said he has known Harris for more than a decade and said he had been able to “observe her very closely in the situation room, in the Oval Office, around the world as a leading voice for American foreign policy.”
Though the secretary did not explicitly endorse Harris, he extolled her leadership during foreign engagements, citing her work in East Asia and also claiming she was “deeply engaged in the Middle East and trying to find a peaceful path forward” and “helping to drive investment in countries in our own hemisphere so people have opportunity in the countries that they come from so they don’t have to make the hazardous journey to the United States.”
Blinken continued: “What I’ve observed is someone that asks time and again the penetrating questions, who cuts to the chase, and is intensely focused on the interests of the American people and making sure our foreign policy is doing everything it can to advance those interests.”
Vice President Harris’ perceived lack of experience in foreign policy has clouded her campaign. While in office, she has spent just three days in the Middle East and four days in Latin America. Still, the secretary rejected the notion that it wasn’t her forte.
“My observation is she is a very strong, very effective and deeply respected voice for our country around the world. When she speaks, she speaks on behalf of the United States,” Blinken said.
-ABC News’ Shannon K. Kingston
Source: Election 2024 updates: Schumer, Jeffries endorse Harris
