Biden bows out of presidential race
By Associated Press
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 race for the White House on Sunday, ending his bid for reelection after a disastrous debate with Donald Trump that raised doubts about the incumbent’s fitness for office with the election just four months away. It was a late-season campaign thunderstrike unlike any in American history.
The decision comes after escalating pressure from Biden’s Democratic allies to step aside following the June 27 debate, in which the 81-year-old president trailed off, often gave nonsensical answers and failed to call out the former president’s many falsehoods. Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to take on Trump, and encouraged his party to unite behind her.
Biden plans to serve out the remainder of his term in office, which ends at noon ET on Jan. 20, 2025.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden wrote in a letter posted to his X account.
Nearly 30 minutes later, Biden threw his support behind Harris, the party’s instant favorite for the nomination at its August convention in Chicago.
“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year,” he said in another post on X. “Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump.”
Harris praised Biden’s “selfless and patriotic act” in a statement, and said she intends to “earn and win” her party’s nomination.
“I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party — and unite our nation — to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda,” she said.
Harris also thanked Biden for “extraordinary leadership” and argued that his legacy as a one-term president would surpass the records of many chief executives who served two terms in office.
Biden’s decision came as he has been isolating at his Delaware beach house after being diagnosed with COVID-19 last week, huddling with a shrinking circle of close confidants and family members about his political future. Biden said he would address the nation later this week to provide “detail” about his decision.
Senior campaign and White House staff were notified just minutes before the letter went out, according to people familiar with the matter. Biden had been reflecting on his future for the past couple days and the decision was closely held.
The White House confirmed the authenticity of the letter.
The announcement is the latest jolt to a campaign for the White House that both political parties see as the most consequential election in generations, coming just days after the attempted assassination of Trump at a Pennsylvania rally.
A party’s presumptive presidential nominee has never stepped out of the race so close to the election. The closest parallel would be President Lyndon Johnson who, besieged by the Vietnam War, announced in March 1968 that he would not seek another term.
Now, Democrats have to urgently try to bring coherence to the nominating process in a matter of weeks and persuade voters in a stunningly short amount of time that their nominee can handle the job and beat Trump. And for his part, Trump must shift his focus to a new opponent after years of training his attention on Biden.
The decision marks a swift and stunning end to Biden’s 52 years in electoral politics, as donors, lawmakers and even aides expressed to him their doubts that he could convince voters that he could plausibly handle the job for another four years.
Biden won the vast majority of delegates and every nominating contest but one, which would have made his nomination a formality. Now that he has dropped out, those delegates will be free to support another candidate.
Harris, 59, appeared to be the natural successor, in large part because she is the only candidate who can directly tap into the Biden campaign’s war chest, according to federal campaign finance rules.
Biden’s backing helps clear the way for Harris, but a smooth transition is by no means assured.
The Democratic National Convention is scheduled to be held Aug. 19-22 in Chicago, but the party had announced that it would hold a virtual roll call to formally nominate Biden before in-person proceedings begin.
It remained to be seen whether other candidates would challenge Harris for the nomination. The Democratic National Committee’s chair, Jaime Harrison, said in a statement that the party would “undertake a transparent and orderly process” to select “a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November.”
Trump reacted to the news in a post on his Truth Social site, in which he said Biden “was not fit to run for President, and is certainly not fit to serve.”
“We will suffer greatly because of his presidency, but we will remedy the damage he has done very quickly,” he added. “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
While Trump and his team had made their preference for facing Biden clear, his campaign had nonetheless ramped up its attacks on Harris as pressure on Biden to step down intensified.
Democratic officials, including many who were behind the effort to push Biden from the race, quickly released statements praising Biden’s decision.
“His decision of course was not easy, but he once again put his country, his party, and our future first,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. “Joe, today shows you are a true patriot and great American.”
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York praised Biden as “one of the most accomplished and consequential leaders in American history.”
First lady Jill Biden responded by reposting the president’s letter announcing his decision and adding red heart emojis.
Granddaughter Naomi Biden Neal said on social media that “I’m nothing but proud of my Pop.”
She said he has served the country “with every bit of his soul and with unmatched distinction” and that “our world is better today in so many ways thanks to him.”
Some Democratic governors praise Biden but don’t immediately endorse Harris as his successor
Govs. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois, Laura Kelly of Kansas, Andy Beshear of Kentucky and Tim Walz of Minnesota are among Democrats who are praising Biden’s record of public service. But they didn’t follow the president’s lead and endorse Harris as his successor.
Beshear said Biden will be remembered as a “consequential president” who, with Harris, led the country through the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Walz, who heads the Democratic Governors Association, said “history will look fondly on his legacy.”
Kelly said few could have “risen to the challenge” like Biden. The Massachusetts governor had issued a statement several weeks ago urging Biden to think hard about his campaign.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer also praised Biden’s public service Sunday, saying on social media platform X that Biden “knows better than anyone what it takes to defeat Donald Trump.”
“My job in this election will remain the same: doing everything I can to elect Democrats and stop Donald Trump, a convicted felon whose agenda of raising families’ costs, banning abortion nationwide, and abusing the power of the White House to settle his own scores is completely wrong for Michigan,” she said.
Former President Barack Obama praises Biden, stops short of endorsing Harris
Former President Barack Obama has praised President Joe Biden’s decision to abandon his reelection quest. But Obama stopped short of endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris to replace Biden as the Democratic nominee the 2024 presidential race.
Obama called Biden, his former vice president, “one of America’s most consequential presidents, as well as a dear friend and partner to me.”
Obama said Sunday that when he picked Biden as his running mate in the 2008 campaign, “what I came to admire even more was his character — his deep empathy and hard-earned resilience; his fundamental decency and belief that everyone counts.”
Obama said Biden “has never backed down from a fight,” adding that “he wouldn’t make this decision unless he believed it was right for America.
Of what’s to come, Obama said he has “extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges.” That nominee will face Republican and former President Donald Trump in November.
Clintons throw their support behind Kamala Harris
Former President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton issued a joint statement endorsing Kamala Harris, saying it’s time to “fight with everything we’ve got” to elect her.
The Clintons said Biden in his “extraordinary career” had “lifted America out of an unprecedented pandemic, created millions of new jobs, rebuilt a battered economy, strengthened our democracy, and restored our standing in the world.”
They added that Biden’s leadership had “advanced our founders’ charge to build a more perfect union and his own stated goal of restoring the soul of our nation.”
DNC says top priority is a candidate who can beat Trump
Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison says following President Joe Biden’s abandoning his reelection bid that “the work that we must do now, while unprecedented, is clear.”
“In the coming days, the party will undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward,” Harrison said in a statement, with “a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November.”
“This process will be governed by established rules and procedures of the party,” Harrison added. “Our delegates are prepared to take seriously their responsibility in swiftly delivering a candidate to the American people.”
His statement also noted: “In short order, the American people will hear from the Democratic Party on next steps and the path forward for the nomination process.”
Biden’s doctor acknowledges citing incorrect data about the president’s COVID-19 infection
White House doctor Kevin O’Connor has acknowledged making a mistake when he said the COVID-19 strain that infected Biden is responsible for a third of new cases in the United States.
O’Connor said Sunday in a new report on the president’s health that the correct percentage is about 12.8% of new coronavirus cases.
“In yesterday’s update, I incorrectly stated that the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) KP.2.3 variant accounted for approximately 33.3% of new cases in the United States. The correct percentage is approximately 12.8%,” O’Connor said.
The doctor said Biden’s symptoms have “improved significantly” and his vital signs remain “absolutely normal.” Biden is recovering at his Delaware beach home.
