Biden also told The Sacramento Bee on Tuesday that he would consider another former 2020 rival, California Sen. Kamala Harris, for “anything that she would be interested in,” including vice president. Harris and Biden notably sparred on the debate stage early in the primary process, when the senator was critical of Biden's past opposition to federally mandated busing to diversify schools.

The former vice president, among the leaders in the race for the Democratic nomination, has publicly kept an open mind about a potential running mate, telling attendees at a town hall event last December that he would consider picking a Republican to join his ticket, although he said he could not think of one specifically whom he might select.

"Whoever I would pick for vice president, and there's a lot of qualified women, there's a lot of qualified African Americans. There really truly are. There's a plethora of really qualified people. Whomever I would pick were I fortunate enough to be your nominee, I'd pick somebody who was simpatico with me, who knew what ... my priorities were and knew what I wanted to [do]," Biden said in Exeter, N.H., on Dec. 30. "We could disagree on tactic, but strategically we'd have to be in the exact same page."