US Presidential Election 2024: In his first comments since announcing he would not seek reelection, President Joe Biden called on his supporters to support Vice President Kamala Harris.
Washington DC: US President Joe Biden urged his supporters to endorse Vice President Harris for the next presidential election in his first remarks since announcing he would not seek reelection on Monday. Regarding his decision to withdraw from the presidential race, Biden called it “the right decision,” CNN reported.
Biden made the remarks during a call to his former campaign headquarters to praise Kamala Harris, who visited his Wilmington office on Monday (local time) to meet with staff and to thank them.
During the call, Biden addressed Harris and her team directly, telling her, “Please embrace her. She’s the best.”
Announcing his withdrawal from the presidential race, Trump called it “astonishing news” and stressed that he believed it was “the right decision,” CNN reported.
“You all gave your heart out to me, and I know this is hard,” Biden told campaign staff, adding, “You guys are a great team.”
The US president thanked the staff who changed their lives to work for him and his now-ended campaign, who he said built the “greatest” campaign organization in history. He said he was “honoured and humbled”.
“I’ll be traveling, but I’m not going anywhere,” Biden said, according to CNN. “I’m not on the campaign trail, but I’m still going to be fully engaged. I have six months left in my presidency, and I’m determined to get the best I can done on both foreign policy and domestic policy.”
Biden announced early Sunday that he would not seek reelection in the “best interests” of the Democratic Party and the country. He endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic presidential nominee and called on Democrats to “come together to defeat Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.”
In a letter posted to X, Biden said, “Though I intended to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to step down and focus on fulfilling the duties of my presidency for the remainder of my term. I will speak to the American people in more detail about my decision later this week.”
President Trump expressed his gratitude to Vice President Kamala Harris for her excellent cooperation. He also expressed his heartfelt gratitude to those who supported his reelection campaign. President Trump said, “I am deeply grateful to all those who dedicated their time and energy to my reelection. I especially thank Vice President Kamala Harris for her extraordinary teamwork in our common goal. I also want to express my sincere gratitude to the American people for their trust in me. It is my belief that if we come together, there is no hurdle we cannot overcome. After all, unity is what defines us as the United States of America.”
He said the United States is one of the world’s strongest economies and has made historic investments to rebuild our nation, lower prescription drug costs for seniors and expand affordable health care to a record number of Americans.
Biden highlighted the achievements of the past administration, saying, “Over the past three and a half years, we have made great progress as a nation. Today, America has the strongest economy in the world. We have made historic investments in rebuilding our nation, lowering prescription drug costs for seniors, and expanding affordable health care to a record number of Americans.”
“We’ve provided desperately needed care to one million veterans exposed to toxic substances. We passed the first gun safety law in 30 years. We appointed the first African-American woman to the Supreme Court. And we passed the most significant climate change legislation in the history of the world. America has never been in a better position to lead than it is now,” he added.
In his letter, Biden said serving as president of the United States had been the honor of his lifetime, noting that the country had overcome the coronavirus pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.
In a statement posted on the social media platform X, Biden said his first decision as the 2020 Democratic candidate was to choose Harris as his vice president, and that it was the best decision he ever made.
Appearing on X, Biden said, “My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my efforts on the duties of my presidency for the remainder of my term. My first decision as my party’s nominee in 2020 was to select Kamala Harris as my vice president, and it was the best decision I have ever made. Today, I want to fully endorse and support Kamala to be this year’s party’s nominee. Fellow Democrats, now is the time to unite and defeat Trump. Let’s do it.”
Notably, Biden is currently isolating at his home in Delaware after testing positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday while campaigning in Las Vegas. Biden’s announcement that he was withdrawing from the presidential race comes after he came under increasing pressure from Democrats following his disastrous defeat in a nationally televised debate against former US President Donald Trump on June 27.
