President Biden was hailed as a selfless hero by top Democrats on Sunday after lower of the 2024 race against former President Trump amid concerns about his age and ability to govern the nation.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), one of the most influential politicians ever to have been Nudging Biden stepping aside — called the 81-year-old “one of the most important presidents in American history” and thanked him for the decision.
“God blessed America with the greatness and goodness of Joe Biden,” Pelosi said in a statement shortly after his announcement.
Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) also expressed gratitude for Biden's decision and praised his presidential record.
“Of course, his decision was not easy, but he once again put his country, his party, and our future first,” Schumer said in a statement Sunday. “Joe, today you prove that you are a true patriot and a great American.”
In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Biden “will go down in history as one of the most impactful and selfless presidents,” and California Democratic Party Chairman Rusty Hicks called him “a statesman who put service before self.”
Meanwhile, Biden's decision infuriated Republicans who had been reveling in his hesitation. survey numbers, Some are calling for him to resign immediately, describing Sunday's announcement as an invalidation of the voters who put him in office three years ago.
“If Joe Biden is unfit to run for president, he is unfit to serve as president,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.). he said on social media platform X.
Biden's announcement ends weeks of speculation about his future, fueled by A transcendental debate Last month, Trump was forced to make comments on live television, but time is now of the essence with the election less than four months away and a lack of unity within the Democratic Party that could further harm his cause.
Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris in his place on Sunday and others, including Bill and Hillary Clinton — quickly followed suit.
But much remains unknown about the Democratic Party's strategy in a historically precarious presidential campaign.
“We’ve been through many ups and downs, but nothing has worried us more about our country than the threat of a second Trump term,” the Clintons said in a joint statement Sunday. “Now is the time to stand with Kamala Harris and fight with everything we have to elect her. The future of America depends on it.”
As the oldest president in history, Biden's decision not to seek reelection comes amid mounting pressure from nearly 40 Democrats and independents in Congress, according to a Washington Post tracker. Sen. Joe Manchin III, an independent from West Virginia, was the last to join those calls, saying just hours before Biden's announcement that he was concerned about his “health and well-being.”
Attention to Biden's physical and mental abilities increased last week when he was sidelined from the campaign trail after contract COVID-19.
For prominent Democrats like Representative Adam B. Schiff, who called on Biden to drop out of the race last week, His decision is a relief and energizes the campaign to defeat Trump.
“President Joe Biden will leave office with a legacy unlike any modern president,” said Schiff, of Burbank.
Former President Obama, for whom Biden served as vice president, called him “a patriot of the highest order” and said he “had every right” to run for reelection but saw the risk of a Trump presidency as too great.
Obama said the United States owes Biden for Beating Trump in 2020 and to steer the nation away from “the four years of chaos, deceit and division” that he said had come under the Republican presidential candidate.
“For him to look at the political landscape and decide that he must pass the torch to a new candidate is undoubtedly one of the most difficult things of his life. But I know he would not make this decision unless he believed it was in the best interest of America,” Obama said in a lengthy statement. statement. “It is a testament to Joe Biden’s love for his country, and a historic example of a true public servant once again putting the interests of the American people ahead of his own, something future generations of leaders would do well to follow.”
Meanwhile, Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance of Ohio called Biden “the worst president of my lifetime” and criticized Harris for being in lockstep with him on policies such as immigration.
“She is responsible for all of these failures and lied for nearly four years about Biden’s mental capacity, saddling the nation with a president who can’t do the job,” Vance said in X. “President Trump and I are ready to save America, whoever is at the top of the Democratic ticket. Go ahead.”
