Megan Rapinoe throws support behind Joe Biden in Instagram chat, offers to be his running mate
Soccer star Megan Rapinoe endorsed Sen. Elizabeth Warren for president before the race for the Democratic nomination whittled down to one.
But now that former Vice President Joe Biden is the presumptive nominee, the star of the 2019 Women’s World Cup is throwing her support behind him.
Rapinoe hosted a 44-minute Instagram chat with Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden on Thursday in an effort to rally support for the presumptive nominee as the Democratic party looks to unite a divided base to defeat President Donald Trump in November’s election.
A post shared by Megan Rapinoe (@mrapinoe) on Apr 30, 2020 at 12:34pm PDT
Rapinoe offers to be Biden’s running mate
During the interview, Rapinoe offered to be Biden’s running mate.
“I don’t want to put you on the spot,” Rapinoe said. “I think I could still play soccer and do this. But if you need a vice president, I’m just saying I’m available for an interview. We can talk logistics and the details. Put it on your list.”
The Democratic party is looking to avoid a split between its centrist and progressive wings similar to the rift in 2016 when Hillary Clinton won the party’s nomination over Bernie Sanders.
Biden, a centrist like Clinton, defeated Sanders and Warren in Democratic primaries in another blow to the progressive wing of the party that wants to see its policies governed from the White House.
Rapinoe looking to unite party
Rapinoe, an LGBTQ activist and progressive, appeared to use Thursday’s interview to endorse Biden in front of her large following of fans. An outspoken critic of Trump, Rapinoe is leveraging her status in the effort to remove him from the White House.
Rapinoe and the Bidens discussed the U.S. Women’s National Team fight for equal pay, the COVID-19 pandemic and the Trump administration’s response to the crisis.
Tara Reade allegation not discussed
One topic that did not come up was a sexual assault allegation against Biden from one of his former staffers. Details have emerged recently about Tara Reade’s allegation against Biden from when she was a member of his Senate staff in 1993.
Coverage of the story has increased pressure on Biden to speak about the allegations publicly, leaving many to wonder if he would when speaking with Rapinoe. He did not.
Shortly after Biden’s chat with Rapinoe, MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” announced on Twitter that Biden will appear on the program to address Reade’s allegation.
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