Joe Biden appears to have gotten over Neera Tanden’s criticism of him

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President-elect Joe Biden’s pick for his top budget post once said his 2016 White House bid would make Hillary Clinton’s own campaign look better.

“The good thing about a Biden run is that he would make Hillary look so much better,” Neera Tanden wrote to then-Clinton campaign manager John Podesta in October 2015. “What a mess today. Thanks for today and last night.”

That email, first reported by Fox News, was sent after Mr Biden said at an event that Ms Clinton should not consider it “naive” to work with Republicans.

“It is possible, it is necessary to end this notion that the enemy is the other party,” Mr Biden said at the “Mondale gala” then.

“End this notion that it is naïve to think we can speak well of the other party and cooperation,” he added. “What is naïve is to think it is remotely possible to govern this country unless we can. That is what is naïve.”

He appeared to be responding to this comment from Ms Clinton the previous week when asked to name the enemy she made during her career that made her most proud.

“Well, in addition to the NRA, the health insurance companies, the drug companies, the Iranians; probably the Republicans,” Ms Clinton said.

It is not uncommon for presidents and presidents-elect to hire people for senior posts who previously have said critical things – especially when those officials were working for rival political campaigns where the goal is to win at all costs.