Biden says he wasn’t expecting Harris’ jab

Former Vice President Joe Biden said Friday that he had not been prepared for Sen. Kamala Harris to so pointedly question his record on school busing during the first Democratic debates. His comments extended the dispute between the two presidential candidates, who have sparred repeatedly in the week since their high-profile confrontation.

In an interview broadcast Friday on CNN, Biden said that although he had expected candidates to target him, he had been caught off guard by Harris’ criticism in part because of their relationship.

“I was prepared for them to come after me, but I wasn’t prepared for the person coming at me the way she came at me,” Biden said, adding that Harris “knows me” and had known his late son, Beau Biden.

Biden also asserted that Harris had taken his position on school busing out of context. He reiterated in the CNN interview that although he believes federally mandated busing “did not work,” he is in favor of voluntary local busing efforts to desegregate schools, such as the one Harris participated in as a child in Berkeley, California, in the 1970s.

On Thursday, Harris dismissed the idea that her remarks at the debate should have come as a surprise to Biden or his campaign.

Meanwhile, Harris’ campaign said Friday that she had raised less than $12 million in the past three months, a total that leaves her well behind her top rivals in the Democratic money race.

Her total for the second quarter, which ended Sunday, was padded by a strong finish. She collected more than $2 million in online donations in the first 24 hours after the start of the Democratic debate June 27, plus $1.2 million online last weekend, her team said.