Biden drops out of election
Endorses Harris; will address the nation this week. [07/22-26/2024]
President backs his VP Harris
Biden: It is in the best interest of my party and my country for me to stand down'
By: Koey garrison
and Swamna Venugopal Ramaswamy
USA Today
WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden said Sunday [07/21/2024] he is ending his bid for reelection amid pressure from Democratic leaders sounding the alarm that his path to beat former President Donald Trump in November [2024] has vanished.
.....
The president's historic withdrawal throws the 2024 race - already roiled by a shocking attempt on Trump's life - into uncertain territory, with Vice President Kamala Harris seen as the Democrat best positioned to take Biden's place atop the party's ticket.
..... Biden made the announcement from his home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where he;s self-isolated since testing positive for COVID-19, Thursday [07/18/2024] night.
..... "It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President," Biden said in a written statement. "And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and my country for me to stand down and to focus solely on my duties as President for the rest of my term."
..... He extended gratitude to Vice President Kamala Harris for being an "extraordinary partner" on Sunday [07/21/2024] and said he's offering "My full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year." [2024]
..... "I believe today [07/21/2024] what i always have: that there is nothing Americans can't do - when we do it together. We just have to remember we are the United States of America," Biden said.
..... The president said he would speak to the nation later this week to provide more detail about his decision.
..... It marks an extraordinary turn for Biden, who for three weeks remained defiant in the face of growing calls from Democratic lawmakers that he withdraw after a disastrous June 27 [2024] debate with Trump raised scrutiny over the president's mental fitness.
..... Biden's exit came after he received bleak warnings form Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, and Democratic House Leader Kaleem Jeffries, D-New York, that his candidacy could lead to massive losses for Democrats in the Senate and House.
..... More than 30 congressional Democrats called for Biden to bow out, and former President Barack Obama reportedly relayed similar fears to Democratic allies about Biden's prospects of beating Trump. Democratic donors form Hollywood to Wall Street also came out against Biden continuing his reelection bid. the decision upends the 2024 election as Election day draws closer, with Democratic National Committee members now tasked with choosing an alternative nominee to take on Trump, whose polling lead has swelled while Democrats have fought internally.
..... Vice Persistent Harris is now the front-runner to replace Biden as the Democratic nominee, but the party's bench of Democratic governors could also be in the mix including Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Andy Beshear of Kentucky.
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Biden becomes the first incumbent president not to seek reelection since Lyndon B. Johnson who, in 1968 amid national unrest and turmoil within the Democratic Party over the Vietnam War, stunned the nation with his decision not to seek a second full term.
..... Biden, 81, has battled Americans' concerns over his age since he took office but tit turned into panic for Democrats after last month's [06/27/2024] first debate with Trump, the Republican nominee.
..... Biden's voice sounded faint, he struggled to complete sentences and finish thoughts, and he failed to rebut many of Trump's claims on the debate stage.
..... Fundraising for the Biden campaign took a dramatic hit. And Biden not only fell behind in key battleground states that will decide the election, but his growing unpopularity seemed to put recent Democratic strongholds like Virginia in play for Trump.
..... Biden;s departure will soon mean the end of a five-decade career in Washington that began in 1972 with an upset victory for U.S. Senate in Delaware. He served as a senator in 36 years, then as Obama;s vice president from 2009 to 2017. Biden uptrend to public life to run against Trump in the 2020 presidential election, beating him 51% -47% in the popular vote.