MALVERN, Pa. — Vice President Kamala Harris boldly characterized her race against Donald Trump Monday as the only recent presidential contest with two very different candidates — a serious slight to her boss, President Biden.
“This election is presenting for the first time probably — in certainly recent history — a very clear choice and difference between the two nominees,” Harris told a crowd of several hundred at a moderated panel with former GOP Rep. Liz Cheney in the pivotal Philadelphia suburbs.
Biden — who framed his 2020 campaign as a “battle for the soul of America” — would certainly disagree about his similarity to Trump, whose views he denounced in 2022 as “semi-fascism.”
Later asked what her campaign means by “turning the page,” Harris further distanced herself from the prez.
“Needless to say, mine will not be a continuation of the Biden administration,” the veep said. “I bring to it my own ideas, my own experiences.”
Harris’ statement stands in contrast to her saying just two weeks ago there’s “not a thing” she would’ve done differently from Biden the last four years.
As expected, Harris and Cheney railed against Trump as a threat to democracy and argued the need for a very different politics.
“We need a healthy two-party system,” Harris said. “We need to be able to have these good, intense debates about issues that are grounded in fact. Let’s start there!”
Harris repeated her popular campaign promise to appoint one Republican to her cabinet if elected — prompting some in attendance to float former Wyoming Rep. Cheney for a national-security role.
“Liz has all the qualifications to be a terrific member of the cabinet,” said Ben Pierce, a 72-year-old public-charity leader from Bryn Mawr.
Pierce — who voted for George W. Bush but has become disillusioned with Trump’s GOP — added Harris should consider appointing multiple Republicans to her cabinet.
“I’m sorry that she says just a Republican,” Pierce told The Post. “Why not leave the door open?”
Craig Kesack, a 60-year-old radiologist from Horsham, suggested Cheney or former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.).
“Liz Cheney would be fine, I’m sure she’d do well as secretary of state,” he told The Post, noting he voted for Republicans until the Obama years.
Craig’s wife, Andrea Fellerman-Kesack, told The Post she’s been involved with anti-Trump Republican groups since he was first elected in 2016. She voted early for Harris but also backed moderate Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) for Congress this year.
Besides Cheney or Kinzinger, Fellerman-Kesack would like to see a former Pennsylvania congressman like Jim Greenwood or Charlie Dent appointed to Harris’ cabinet.