Former Vice President Kamala Harris revealed in her new memoir "107 Days" that her inner circle crafted a "Red File," in the event that President Biden was unable to continue his presidency, a year before he dropped out of the 2024 presidential race.
While Biden continued to say that he would run for a second term as president, Harris' brother-in-law, Tony West, suggested the creation of a contingency plan. "A year earlier, he had started what he called the ‘Red File,'" Harris wrote. "With a president in his eighties, he suggested, it would be malpractice on my part to be unprepared if, God forbid, something should happen."
One year before the 2024 election, Kamala Harris' brother-in-law drafted up a whole game plan in case Biden dropped out of the race and the former VP would need to take his place.
— Reagan Reese (@reaganreese_) September 23, 2025
He called it the "Red File." He even held a meeting with Harris' team about the plan. pic.twitter.com/1eIMXh2FJN
West drafted a plan outlining which world leaders Harris should call first if she assumed the presidency, the timing of her initial statement, and the rules guiding her transition from vice president to president. He explained that it would be "prudent to have a plan for the first twenty-four to forty-eight hours, so people don't have to make a lot of decisions in the pressure of a crisis."
Harris wrote that she did not want to think about any such case where President Biden would pass, and left the bulk of the "Red File" in West's hands.
When Kamala Harris discovered that Biden would be dropping out of the presidential race, and that she would be the new nominee, West was the first person she called.
She wrote in her memoir that West told her, "If this isn't handled right, he [Biden] will crap all over his legacy."
While Harris did not want to be involved with the "Red File," it was thanks to its creation that she was able to quickly launch her short-lived presidential campaign. West became one of her "chosen committee of advisors," responsible for helping her choose her running mate and prepping her for debates.
West now serves as Uber’s senior vice president, chief legal officer, and corporate secretary. He previously held top posts in the Obama administration, earning Senate confirmation twice, most notably as the U.S. associate attorney general.