Many pundits believed he would eventually pass on the baton; that it was just a matter of time. But no one knew when he would do it. Before COVID-19 drove the last nail, there had been strident calls for President Joe Biden to step aside from the 2024 presidential race, on account of his frail gait and his disastrous performance against Donald Trump during the debate.
However, the more the babel increased, the more the President dug in, insisting he would not quit the race. He would run.
But the chicken came home to roost on Sunday as the President of the United States of America announced that he had decided to drop out of the race for the love of his country and the Democratic Party.
He made the historic announcement through a personally signed letter on his official X handle.
“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 the letter posted on X. “I will speak to the Nation later this week in more detail about my decision.”
Biden thanked Vice President Kamala Harris for “being an extraordinary partner” in his letter.
About 30 minutes later, he endorsed Harris in another post on X.
“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year,” he said. “Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump.”
Harris was full of praises for her Principal as she acknowledged the President’s gesture.
In a statement, Harris praised President Biden’s “selfless and patriotic act” and declared that 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.
Biden’s campaign for the 2024 race received a severe jolt with his disastrous performance during his debate with the Republican candidate and former President, Donald Trump.
Hard as Biden tried to return the campaign to winning ways, his efforts did not impress big donors powerful Democrats who persistently mounted pressure on him to step aside.
As he struggled on, he contracted COVID-19 and had to self-isolate, thereby pausing his campaign. Then, came Sunday’s unprecedented announcement.
With Sunday’s development, the party may likely coalesce around Kamala Harris as she represents the surest path out of the current situation.
Interestingly, Harris had, even before Sunday’s announcement by Biden, scored the endorsements of the Congressional Black Caucus and former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
“We are honored to join the President in endorsing Vice President Harris and will do whatever we can to support her,” former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a statement.
But President Barack Obama is yet to stick out his neck for Harris, at least publicly. Rather, he pledged to support whoever eventually emerges as the party nominee.
“I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges,” the former President said in a statement.
