Vice President Joe Biden on Friday ruled out the possibility he would be secretary of state in a potential Hillary Clinton administration after reports that he had been mentioned for the job.
“I’ll do anything I can if Hillary’s elected to help her, but I don’t want to remain in the administration,” Biden told CNN affiliate KBJR. He added that Clinton has not yet reached out to him about a potential role.
“I have no intention of staying involved. I have a lot of things to do, but I’ll help her if I can in any way I can,” Biden added.
A Biden aide pointed out that the vice president has made similar comments about declining a role in a potential Clinton administration for weeks.
Sources connected to the campaign and the transition team said earlier Friday that Biden’s name had been mentioned, among others, for the high-profile role.
Those sources also cautioned that his name is one among many under consideration to be presented to Clinton in the event of forming a cabinet.
Officially, the Clinton campaign is not commenting on Biden’s name being on the list, first reported by Politico on Thursday, and campaign advisers have said this is not being discussed in the campaign.
This is part of the transition discussion and does not reflect any final decision.
Asked about the possibility earlier Friday, sources close to Biden said this is the first that they had heard of it.
Biden has been aggressively campaigning for Clinton, but he has frequently said he is interested in moving to a new chapter of his life beyond his career in government.
Clinton and Donald Trump both have transition teams in place who are making lists and recommendations for Cabinet members and other appointments.
Clinton has ordered her aides to not discuss the transition, for fear of looking beyond Election Day. She has declined to discuss any thoughts she is having, but has started assembling a list of potential Chiefs of staff.