Jon Favreau: Team Biden Secretly Knew Trump Would Crush Him
Biden’s decision to run for re-election was “catastrophic,” the former Obama speechwriter also said.

SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images
Pod Save America host and former Obama speechwriter Jon Favreau said Friday that before Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race in July, his campaign’s internal polls showed Donald Trump beating him in a rematch with at least 400 electoral votes.
Favreau also blamed the Biden camp for simultaneously downplaying polls showing the president was unpopular.
“He and his inner circle, they refused to believe the polls. They refused to believe he was unpopular. They refused to acknowledge until very late that anyone could be upset about inflation,” he said.
“And they just kept telling us that his presidency was historic and it was the greatest economy ever. We just heard him again say that it’s the greatest economy ever. Clearly, 70, 80 percent of voters don’t believe that. They don’t believe that about their own personal financial situation, but they just keep telling us that.”
“Joe Biden’s decision to run for president again was a catastrophic mistake.” - @JonFavs
— Pod Save America (@PodSaveAmerica) November 8, 2024
Listen to more Pod Save America wherever you get your podcasts. pic.twitter.com/nhtO9hs4aA
Favreau added that the Biden campaign was “shivving” Harris by “privately telling reporters” she couldn’t beat Trump.
ADVERTISEMENT
“After the debate, the Biden people told us that the polls were fine and Biden was still the strongest candidate. They were privately telling reporters at the time that Kamala Harris couldn‘t win,” he said. “So, they were shivving Kamala Harris to reporters while they told everyone else, ’Not a time for an open process.’”
Get the best of The Beast delivered right to your inbox
By clicking “SUBSCRIBE” you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Favreau continued:
“Then we find out when the Biden campaign becomes the Harris campaign, that the Biden campaign’s own internal polling—at the time when they were telling us he was the strongest candidate—showed that Donald Trump was going to win 400 electoral votes."
Since Election Day, there was been a good deal of finger-pointing in Democratic circles, with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, for instance, telling The New York Times that an open primary may have been more beneficial to Harris.
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.
