When Kamala Harris faced political heat, Joe Biden's son Beau had her back

This story, which originally published on July 31, 2019, has been updated after Joe Biden picked Kamala Harris as his vice presidential running mate.

Before bed every night, Kamala Harris, then California attorney general, said a prayer.

“God, please help me do the right thing,” she would say.

It was 2011, in the midst of the housing crisis, when all 50 state attorney generals agreed to conduct a multi-state investigation into the banks and claims of foreclosure abuse. Harris, who had just narrowly won her seat, questioned the proposed settlement agreement. She ultimately decided to pull California out of the negotiations.

When colleagues, political consultants and even White House officials questioned her decision, she found an ally – and friend – in Beau Biden, then Delaware's attorney general. He too was wary of the negotiations.

"There were periods, when I was taking the heat," Harris wrote in her 2019 memoir, "when Beau and I talked every day, sometimes multiple times a day.

"We had each other’s backs."

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Up until Beau's death in 2015, Harris had a fondness and friendship with the Delaware politician – and by extension his father, former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

The elder Biden endorsed her for senator. Harris attended Beau's funeral and has spoken highly of the Delaware family throughout the years.

On Wednesday, Harris spoke about their friendship while appearing with Joe Biden publicly for the first time since he chose her to be his vice presidential running mate.

"Beau was the kind of guy who inspired people to be a better version of themselves," Harris said, as Biden sat nearby with his head down.

Harris and Biden had a fiery, emotional exchange during the first Democratic debate in a year ago, when the California senator attacked the former vice president for his remarks on working with segregationists and opposing busing in the 1970s.

It led to a viral moment for Harris, and a subsequent rise in the polls. Biden, on the other hand, saw a brief dip in support, though he went on to win the Democratic primaries.

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“I was prepared for them to come after me,” Biden told CNN's Chris Cuomo in the aftermath of the debate where he and Harris clashed. “But I wasn’t prepared for the person coming after me the way she came after me. She knew Beau, she knows me."

Biden has said he doesn't plan to be as "polite" in the next debate.

'That wasn’t who Beau was'

In Harris' memoir, "The Truths We Hold: An American Journey," she describes Beau as an "incredible friend and colleague."

The two became close following the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. At the time, both attorneys general were seen as rising political stars.

In 2012, two years into Biden's second term as attorney general, the states were in the midst of a settlement between five major banks regarding foreclosure abuse claims.

Biden and Harris were two of the five attorneys general who had balked at the terms of the initial settlement agreement.

One of the major concerns for both Harris and Biden, according to a 2012 News Journal article, was that the settlement would limit states' ability to take legal action against the banks for any previous wrongdoing that would be discovered at a later time.

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Despite several of the banks being headquartered in Wilmington, and then-Gov. Jack Markell supporting the settlement at the time, Biden was wary of it. The initial settlement would result in $40 million for Delaware.

Biden opened his own investigation into the banks, and he and Harris shared information with one another. Harris wrote in her memoir that Biden had "every reason to keep his head down and toe the line."

"But that wasn’t who Beau was," she wrote. "Beau was a man of principle and courage."

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Biden ultimately agreed to a settlement that secured $185 million for Delaware. It was seen as a major win that could have propelled him to the governor's mansion.

Patty Dailey Lewis, who served as deputy attorney general to Biden, recalled Beau's fondness of Harris. He respected her prioritizing the vulnerable, many of whom had lost their houses and life savings. It made him trust her, Dailey Lewis said.

In addition to the financial crisis, Dailey Lewis recalled Harris and Biden having several conversations about child and elder abuse, often sharing notes and advice.

Despite the pressure Beau faced in Delaware to sign the settlement agreement, Dailey Lewis, who is now the executive director of the Beau Biden Foundation, said he was not one "to roll over."

"When he stood up with you, he was standing up with you," she said. "Beau wasn't afraid to be the only guy standing."

'I’m not going to be as polite this time'

When Beau died at age 46 in 2015, after battling brain cancer, Harris attended his funeral in Wilmington. Months later, she introduced Joe Biden at California's Democratic Convention.

"Joe has given so much to our country," she said in her speech. "On top of everything he has accomplished, he gave us my dear friend Beau Biden."

Joe Biden eventually endorsed Harris' campaign for Senate, citing Beau's longtime support for the California attorney general.

Dailey Lewis declined to comment on the criticisms Joe Biden and Harris have exchanged or how she thinks Beau Biden might have reacted to it.

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"I can tell you one thing on that: Beau Biden loved his father with all his heart," she said. "And his father loved him the exact same way."

Yet when interviewed on "The View" just two weeks earlier, Harris said she has "no intention of attacking Joe Biden." But she said she will continue to point out their differences.

On May 30, the anniversary of Beau's death, and a month before the first Democratic debate, Harris posted a photo of her and Beau. She wrote that she was thinking of the Bidens on the somber day.

"Four years after his passing," she wrote, "I still miss him."

Contact Meredith Newman at mnewman@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @MereNewman.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Kamala Harris, Joe Biden's running mate, was friend of Beau Biden