The truth behind the cringe video of the Obamas endorsing Kamala Harris

Just three days after President Joe Biden left the 2024 presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris had to get her acting chops ready. 

Harris was to receive a phone call from former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama, so they would officially endorse her campaign.

The video format, considered 'cringe' and 'staged' by online commenters, was due to desperation, reveal journalists Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes in their forthcoming book, Fight: Inside the Wildest Battle for the White House.

The campaign Harris inherited from Biden, being run by Obama alumna Jen O'Malley Dillon, was 'hemorrhaging cash' so badly that one source told the authors 'that there were concerns in Wilmington that the campaign might not make payroll in August.'

Creating a video, O'Malley Dillon thought, would be a good way to 'save a few bucks – and generate some grassroots giving - by turning the Obamas' endorsement of Harris into a shareable video clip rather than a simple tweet or major campaign event.' 

The problem, the authors claim, is that O'Malley Dillon didn't articulate that. 

'Harris aides were taken aback when they heard what they believed was a demand from the Obamas,' Allen and Parnes wrote. 'The former first couple was purportedly insisting on a campy behind-the-scenes video of Harris taking their call.' 

'She would be on camera, but not the Obamas, and Harris would have to clear her calendar to align with theirs,' they wrote. 

One aide told the authors: 'It was like, "Here's the window of time that Michelle and Barack have for you to take this call, and it can't be on video because Michelle's not going to be camera-ready."' 

At the same time, Harris' aides were confused about why they needed to make a video.

'Harris’s longtime advisers pushed back, asking why the Obamas wouldn’t just put out a paper statement or a tweet,' Allen and Parnes wrote. 'A bewildered Obama aide replied that the video was the Harris campaign's idea.' 

The source who warned about the payroll problem spelled it out.

'Jen wanted a video because we were hard up for cash,' the person said. 'But she didn't tell anybody. She wasn't transparent about it. Logistically, it was a pain in the butt.' 

O'Malley Dillon did not respond to a request for comment. 

Harris filmed the video spot on Wednesday, July 24 while she was in Indianapolis to address the Zeta Phi Beta sorority. 

It was released the following Friday morning. 

'To seem real, Harris had to fake surprise and enthusiasm about what should have been an obvious endorsement from both Obamas,' Allen and Parnes wrote. 

The final script had Harris feigning surprise that both Obamas were on the line.

'Ohh hi, you're both together. It's good to hear you both,' Harris said, after being handed a phone by an aide. 

Both Barack and Michelle said they were proud of Harris, as she told them, 'We’re going to have some fun with this too, aren't we?' 

For Harris, Allen and Parnes wrote, 'the optics of unity had taken on the utmost importance. So the quality and authenticity of the endorsement moment took a back seat.' 

'It took days of intense negotiations to strike a deal on the simplest act in politics,' they continued. 'The whole frame, including the script, was designed to elevate the Obamas by making it look like she was begging for their blessing.' 

'This was typical bulls***,' the authors said.