‘Character, Dammit!’ Biden Praises Liz Cheney’s Endorsement of Kamala Harris As ‘One Of Most Consequential Speeches’ Ever

President Joe Biden spoke to the press briefly on Thursday evening and offered unprompted praise of Liz Cheney’s speech earlier in the day campaigning for Vice President Kamala Harris.

Cheney, the former chair of the House GOP Conference and lifelong Republican, offered her unequivocal support for Harris as an antidote to Donald Trump, who she argues represents an existential threat to American democracy.

“I don’t know if you got to watch Liz Cheney. Liz Cheney, did you get to see her?” Biden said as he got off Air Force One, adding:

She made one of the most consequential speeches I’ve ever heard. She has character. I know her dad. And her dad as well, we argued like hell. But I’ve always admired her courage and honesty. What she did took not only political courage, but physical courage. Physical courage. I’ve never been so proud. I really am, really incredibly proud of her.

A reporter then asked the president about the electoral impact of Cheney’s speech. “I’m not making a judgment just talking about her. She and her father have character. Character, dammit. It’s what we need in this country. Character and there’s not enough of it in terms of how we…” Biden replied as reporters began shouting questions.

“You said you’d be talking to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, why hasn’t that happened, what are you waiting for?” a reporter asked.

“Because there’s no action going on right now,” Biden replied.

Cheney roasted former President Donald Trump during her speech in Wisconsin alongside Harris. “The most conservative of conservative values is fidelity to our constitution,” Cheney said. “I have never voted for a Democrat, but this year I am proudly casting my vote for President Kamala Harris.”

“I was a Republican even before Donald Trump started spray-tanning,” added Cheney during another moment in the speech in which she also urged voters to “reject the depraved cruelty” of Trumpism.

Watch the clip above via C-SPAN.