First Lady Jill Biden is reportedly urging President Joe Biden to "burn the whole thing down" in his final days in office in apparent revenge against political allies who pushed for Biden's ouster during the campaign.
Joe Biden enraged top brass the Democratic Party when he pardoned his son Hunter earlier this month. However, now he and Jill have "been quietly sharpening the metaphorical carving knives, with their sights set firmly on the one-time allies they perceive as having wronged them," according to the Daily Mail.
The outlet reported that an insider source familiar with the First Lady's feelings on Democrat elites in DC said, "Jill views Democrats on Capitol Hill, the [wider] party, the Obamas, staff inside and outside the White House, the media, and all of Washington DC with such misguided resentment that I can't imagine she [isn't] encouraging [Joe] to burn the whole thing down, despite his better judgment."
Nancy Pelosi has become a specific target of the First Lady, as Pelosi led the charge to push Biden out of the nomination after he had a disastrous debate performance against now-President-elect Donald Trump.
The First Lady and Pelosi have been friends for years; however the she is now giving the former House Speaker the silent treatment, the outlet reported, and it is unlikely that they will mend the friendship. During the Kennedy Center Honors held annually, Pelosi was seated a far distance from the Bidens. She as well as her husband, Paul, have usually been courted at the event in years past, getting access to the presidential box. This time, however, they were pushed to the orchestra floor section. Pelosi was behind the scenes urging Democrats to remove Biden from the presidential ticket and replace him.
Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff, however, did have access to the box. But when the Bidens arrived, they did not even make eye contact with the pair. Some have speculated that President Biden, out of spite against Pelosi and the Obamas for forcing him to step aside, endorsed Harris for the nomination instead of allowing for a more open process. Pelosi said at the time that she was interested in holding a primary, but that was quahsed by Biden, who dropped out of the race and endorsed Harris on the same day—just days after the RNC came to a close and a week after Trump survived an assassination attempt in Butler, PA.
"[Biden] basically had the palace coup from all directions, from George Clooney to Pelosi. I think he got pissed off [and] said, 'F*ck you,' and gave us Harris," said John Morgan, Democratic mega-donor and Florida attorney. "Pelosi had told her delegation that there would be a convention and a nominating process. And Barack Obama did not endorse [Harris] for five days."
Biden has been giving Harris the cold shoulder, according to the outlet. Some think that Biden thought Harris could win, but was disappointed that she blew the campaign against Trump after being handed over a billion dollars in donor funds.