There have been persistent rumors for some time that Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom could be a last-minute replacement for President Joe Biden as the Democratic Party's nominee ahead of the 2024 election, or at the very least is poised to be the party's frontrunner for the 2028 presidential cycle.

Biden himself even joked during a speech this week that Newsom "could have the job I’m looking for," according to SFGate.

That, however, would seemingly place the highly ambitious Democratic governor on a collision course with the equally ambitious Vice President Kamala Harris, a fellow Californian and purported friend who presumably would be Biden's heir apparent and chosen successor in either the current 2024 cycle or the upcoming 2028 cycle.

Biden appears to joke that Newsom could take his job as president

On Thursday, President Biden delivered a speech in San Francisco, California as part of a welcome reception for foreign leaders attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC summit.

During his introductory remarks, the president expressed gratitude toward the local leaders hosting the international summit and said, "I want to talk about Governor Newsom. Want to thank him. He’s been one hell of a governor, man."

"Matter of fact, he could be anything he wants. He could have the job I’m looking for," Biden added jokingly to laughter and applause from the audience.

Newsom has tried to downplay his aspirations for the presidency

SFGate reported that there have been rumors for years about a potential Gov. Newsom presidential bid, especially within the past year given growing concerns about President Biden's age and capabilities, not to mention Biden's sinking approval ratings -- even in California -- and multiple polls showing him losing a rematch against former President Donald Trump.

"But even a full-throated endorsement of Biden hasn’t fully killed off the presumption that Newsom is waiting in the wings, either as a 2024 last-minute replacement, or for a full-fledged 2028 run," the outlet noted of the governor's efforts to downplay the presidential run gossip.

Of course, standing in the way of a Newsom path to the White House would be VP Harris, and the California governor has deferred to his fellow Californian -- at least publicly -- and has essentially stated that he would not challenge or otherwise obstruct her own obvious intentions to ascend to the presidency.

Newsom and Harris are "frenemies" and rivals whose "worlds will collide" eventually

At a glance, one might assume that Gov. Newsom and VP Harris were good friends, having both climbed the political ladder around the same time out of San Francisco to attain broader power and positions, but according to The Messenger, the pair are actually locked in a "decades-long 'Cold War.'"

"They’re definitely frenemies but they want to look collaborative in public," an unnamed senior strategist who has worked with both politicians told the outlet. "They’re two highly ambitious people who came up in the same crew. He has the power that she’d like and she has the title that he’d like."

"There’s mutual respect but I don’t think it’s grounded in admiration," the strategist added. "Their worlds will collide. Newsom isn’t going to stay in the backseat for Kamala … The writing is on the wall."

Was Biden just joking or did he accidentally reveal something?

The American people will likely never know for certain whether what Biden said in his remarks Thursday about Newsom was an intentional joke about the governor's obvious ambitions or was a slip that prematurely revealed secret plans that weren't yet ready to be publicly exposed.

Either way, it came across as a bit of a slight and snub of the sitting vice president, and though she'd likely never openly admit it, Harris is probably quite infuriated by any mention of the idea that she could be leapfrogged by her home state rival on their competing paths toward the seat behind the desk in the Oval Office.