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Howard Stern has revealed he had concerns going into the recent US presidential election that the country would not vote for Kamala Harris to become the first female president because of “how men talk behind closed doors.”
The influential radio host, 70, was speaking on his SiriusXM show on Wednesday (November 6), the day after the election.
“I think Kamala was a fine candidate,” said Stern. “She’s a fine woman. The problem I had is that I thought [President] Biden was doing a really good job, actually. But I understand why people said they had to switch.”
He added that he shared widespread concerns that the Democratic party did not spend enough time choosing a successor to President Biden, saying: “If I could go back in time and turn the time machine on, I think what would have been a better process would have been if Joe Biden said, ‘Hey, I did a good job and I’m ready to hand over the baton.’
“And then let people in the Democratic Party nominate someone through the process of voting, through the primaries — that would’ve been ideal.”
Instead, Biden’s decision to drop out in July, relatively late in the race, meant that Harris became the de-facto candidate.
“At the time when Kamala was chosen by Joe Biden, I said, sadly — I hate to say this, because I was a big Hillary Clinton supporter — I don’t think America can vote for a woman,” Stern told co-host Robin Quivers.
“I say this because I know men. I know how men talk behind closed doors,” Stern continued, adding: “I don’t even want to say what I heard when she was selected.”
He went on to say that he hoped to cheer up listeners saddened by Trump’s victory, explaining: “I’m not someone who believes in sour grapes. I love America. I hope America can thrive.”
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During a phone call with someone identifying as a Trump voter, Stern said, “I hope Donald Trump is successful. He is now going to be my next president.”
Harris had been a guest on Stern’s show in October, and had mocked Trump as a “sore loser” during her appearances.
Stern blasted Trump’s “delusional” framing of the then-upcoming election, saying: “‘If I win, it’s a fair election. If I lose, Kamala Harris and her buddies fixed it.’ That’s delusional.”
“In America, we call that a sore loser,” Harris replied.
