SAN DIEGO — Mark Arabo, a San Diego businessman and community leader has known President Joe Biden for years, well before he became president.
The San Diego State grad has even had Biden over to his house.
“I love President Biden,” Arabo said. “I know the family. I know the President. He's a friend. He's a patriot.”
Which is why Arabo says he was sad when Biden announced he was ending his 2024 campaign.
“He has a heart of gold. He's so down to Earth. He's so humble," he said.
Arabo was there in person when Biden debated Donald Trump.
“It was a bad night,” he said. “It wasn't indicative, I don't think. of anything more than that. He was tired and exhausted.”
While Arabo calls it a bad night, other democrats called his performance disastrous. President Biden slipped in the polls and while he still felt he could beat Trump, he acquiesced to calls from within his party to end his bid.
“He is the definition of American spirit. He fights back. He gets back. He wins. But he felt at this time that it's better for the country and for him to unite behind Vice President Kamala Harris and move forward in one united front," he said.
Arabo acknowledges that there is a renewed sense of hope now that Biden has pulled out. Party leaders say Harris has raised over $80 million in 24 hours. Arabo is not surprised.
“People get focused on her ethnicity and her gender, but she's much more, much more than those defining factors,” he said. “She's been a prosecutor, Attorney General, A United States Senator, and now the Vice President. So she's prepared for the job on day one.
Arabo is a Biden delegate and will be in Chicago next month for the Democratic National Convention. He says he will throw his support behind Harris and believes other delegates will do the same.
“Vice President Harris is the right person at the right time for the right job,” he said. “It's important for all of us to come together and support her and move forward with 105 days to go.”
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