- The US president said he took the measure in the interest of his party and his country.
US President Joe Biden decided on Sunday, July 21, to drop out of the race for re-election in the interest of his party and the country, he announced in a letter.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to be your president. And while my intention has been to seek re-election, I believe it is best for my party and for the country that I step down and concentrate solely on fulfilling my duties as president for the remainder of my term,” said the 81-year-old president.
Biden also asked for votes for Vice President Kamala Harris as his replacement for the November 5 elections on Sunday, via a message on social media X.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 21, 2024
Shortly after the announcement, Harris expressed that she wants to be elected as the candidate of the Democratic Party to face Trump in November.
However, This does not guarantee that she will be the one to face the Republican in the November elections, since officially the candidacy depends on the decision of the delegates of the Democratic Party.
He gave in to party pressure
Biden has thus given in to pressure from his own party after his mediocre performance in the first debate of the race for the White House against former President Trump. Dozens of legislators and senators had asked him in recent days to abandon the baton due to his advanced age.
The president, who is isolated at his home in Delaware recovering from Covid-19, said that in the coming days he will address the nation to explain his decision.
“For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked so hard to see me re-elected. I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all of this work. And let me express my sincere thanks to the American people for the faith and trust they have placed in me,” he said.
Following the news of the move, several international leaders applauded Biden’s decision, including Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez; British Prime Minister Keir Starmer; Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris; and Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
The Kremlin, for its part, has said that Russia’s priority is victory in the military campaign in Ukraine, not the US presidential election.
“We need to be patient and closely monitor what will happen next. The priority for us is to achieve the goals of the special military operation,” Dmitry Peskov, presidential spokesman, told the TV channel. Telegram Shot.
Trump, for his part, said Biden was never fit for office. “Corrupt Joe Biden was not fit to run for President, and he certainly is not fit to hold office, and never was!” the Republican declared in a message on the social network Truth, in which he made no reference to Vice President Kamala Harris, who could seek the Democratic nomination.
Few Democratic leaders support Harris’s possible candidacy
Democratic Party leaders reacted to President Biden’s reelection bid with a mix of respect and emotion, only in a few cases explicitly endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison, before reporting on the process that is opening in the party for a new nomination, initially said he was “excited” because he still supported Biden’s candidacy and highlighted “his leadership during all these years,” he said. NBC.
Senate Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, on his X account, applauded Biden as “not only a great president and great legislator, but a truly incredible human being” and said that “his decision was not easy but he once again put his country, his party and our future first.”
Influential lawmaker Nancy Pelosi, a former House Speaker, similarly described the president in X as “an American patriot who has always put our country first,” and expressed her “love and gratitude” for “believing” in America and giving opportunities to its people.
Former President Bill Clinton and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in a broader statement, praised Biden’s tenure and thanked him for things like job creation, economic recovery, “strengthening democracy and restoring our status in the world.”
The Clintons were explicit in their support for Harris: “We are honored to join the president in endorsing Vice President Harris and we will do what we can to support her,” also calling for “fighting with everything we have to elect her” against Republican candidate Donald Trump.
Former President Barack Obama, by contrast, published a lengthy post calling Biden a “first-rate patriot” for stepping aside and calling on the Democratic National Convention next August to nominate an “extraordinary candidate,” but he made no mention of Harris.
Messages of respect also came from governors: Jared Polis (Colorado), Andy Beshear (Kentucky) and Gavin Newsom (California) thanked him for his achievements, and the first two recalled that he allocated federal funds to their states for infrastructure, among other things.
Among other Democratic congressmen, legislator Nanette Barragán, president of the Hispanic caucus in Congress, described Biden as a “transcendental” president in the history of the country, pledged to protect his “legacy” and expressed support for him and Harris in the next stage of the party.
Texas lawmaker Joaquín Castro recalled him as “one of the presidents with the most achievements” and also paid tribute to Harris by listing the achievements of his administration, such as getting the economy back on track after the pandemic, investing in the manufacturing sector and lowering drug prices.
Meanwhile, Hawaii Senator Mazie Hirono looked to the future: “I am proud to call Vice President Harris a friend and colleague, and I look forward to doing everything in my power to get her elected to the White House so we can continue the progress of the past four years,” she said in a statement.
While endorsements for Harris were generally unclear, with most messages focused on Biden, her campaign co-chair Cedric Richmond told the CNN that the president did the right thing by asking for a vote for her in his announcement: “He chose her as number two. He could see how smart, tough and good she is.”
The eighth eligible president who does not seek reelection
Including Biden, eight U.S. presidents have not sought re-election despite being eligible: Lyndon B. Johnson (1963–1969), Harry S. Truman (1945–1953), Calvin Coolidge (1923–1929), Theodore Roosevelt (1901–1909), James Polk (1845–1849), James Buchanan (1857–1861), and Rutherford Hayes (1877–1881) – and only one, Richard Nixon (1969–1974), resigned while in office.
But there is no precedent for a presidential candidate leaving office just weeks before a convention. Those who opted to do so did so long beforehand and never because of their physical abilities.
Neither Presidents Harry Truman nor Lyndon Johnson faced serious doubts about their ability to be re-elected, as did Coolidge or Theodore Roosevelt. They simply decided not to continue.
The Hayes, Buchanan and Polk announced that they would not seek re-election and served only one term.
For his part, Republican President Richard Nixon resigned in August 1974 (the only one in the history of the United States) already during his second term, due to the Watergate affair, an espionage operation orchestrated from the White House against the Democratic Party.
The last American president who was eligible to run again but decided not to do so was Lyndon B. Johnson in March 1968. Facing failing health and growing opposition to the Vietnam War, he stunned the country with the announcement.
With information from EFE
Related news
#Biden #drops #presidential #race #calls #votes #Kamala #Harris #details
2024-07-22 21:31:50
