Joe Biden declared his candidacy for reelection on April 25, 2023, pleading with voters to grant him more time to “finish the job” with Vice President Kamala Harris at his side.
“Every generation has a moment where they have to stand up for democracy to defend their inalienable rights. This, I think, is ours,” he stated in a widely distributed video.
A year later, only months before Americans head to the polls on November 5, Biden once again announced he was withdrawing from the race. This time, he may have upset US politics by doing so in a letter that he put out on social media platform X.
After getting COVID-19 and isolating himself at home in Delaware, he wrote in a letter, “Serving as your president has been the greatest honor of my life. Even though I had intended to run for reelection, I think it would be better for my party and the nation if I stepped down and spent the balance of my term concentrating only on my obligations as president. I will go into further depth about my choice when I address the Nation later this week.”
Let’s examine how the 81-year-old commander-in-chief arrived at this choice and how even his White House staff was taken aback while the country and the world reel from it.
Biden’s withdrawal from the race represents a radical departure from his earlier position, in which he claimed to be the only candidate capable of defeating Trump. The 81-year-old maintained he was the best candidate for the position in spite of the Democratic Party’s and its funders’ mounting clamor. He even declared he would be going back on the campaign trail this week, following his COVID-19 diagnosis.
But all of that is said to have changed on Saturday night, at which point he reportedly started speaking over the phone with his family and trusted advisors before making his decision on Sunday.
Reluctantly, Biden reportedly realized he had to end his campaign since his polling numbers were declining, donors were running away, and party leaders and senior members were pressuring him to step down, according to an NBC News story. He ultimately realized on Saturday what many Democrats had already realized: Biden could not continue to run in this election.
Biden gathered his family and top aides on Saturday, including his senior strategist Mike Donilon, his deputy chief of staff Annie Tomasini, and First Lady Jill Biden’s chief of staff Anthony Bernal. One of Biden’s closest advisers is Steve Richetti.
After scouring the data for hours on end, Biden collaborated with Donilon to create the statement that would end his candidacy, while Richetti handled the logistics of announcing the announcement and notifying other staff members.
According to individuals who spoke to the BBC, on Sunday morning, Biden announced his intention to withdraw from the presidential race. He then called his campaign chair, Jen O’Malley Dillon, vice president Kamala Harris, and chief of staff, Jeff Zients, individually.
To announce the news, Biden called senior White House staff members on Sunday at 1:45 p.m. (local time). He informed them over a Zoom conversation, and a minute later, he made his public announcement, shocking and surprising a lot of people.
Biden’s wife Jill is alleged to have had a significant influence on Joe’s choice to withdraw from the contest. According to Elizabeth Alexander, the first lady’s director of communications, “she was supportive of whatever road he chose, down to the last hours of the decision only he could make,” the BBC reported. She is, in the reliable manner that only a spouse of over fifty years can be, his staunchest supporter, champion, and biggest believer.
Notably, some people learned about Biden’s choice via social media, which shows how closely the information was kept a secret.
Everyone around Biden was caught off guard, he told NBC News, especially after some of his closest allies publicly endorsed his candidacy on Sunday shows. Nobody was aware. Even Kamala was unaware of it, the source claimed.
According to a Washington Post report, several of his advisers felt misled and were advised to continue advocating for him on Friday and Saturday. A few were even hard at work on Sunday morning, getting ready for the morning shows and making their weekly trip back to Wilmington.
Before announcing his decision on Sunday, Biden called his vice president, Kamala Harris, to inform her that he was withdrawing his candidacy for reelection.
The vice president reportedly called a number of party leaders quickly after learning of the news to make sure she would have an easy time securing the party’s candidacy.
She currently has the backing of former President Bill Clinton as well as Hillary Clinton, the party’s 2016 presidential nominee, in addition to Biden. Notably, Barack Obama, the former US president, has not yet endorsed the vice president.
Though Biden has given Clinton his support, not every Democratic Party member feels the same way. Democrats are concerned about Harris’s capacity to oppose Trump, and several prominent senators have even suggested that an open convention be held in August.
Following the disastrous June 27 debate, Biden decided to withdraw. The 81-year-old repeatedly froze and stammered throughout the debate with Donald Trump, leading many to conclude that Biden had lost the plot.
His party soon started making requests for him to withdraw from the campaign. He was told he was not going to win. Additionally, donors who were really concerned about Biden’s health were ceasing to provide money.
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Bigger figures like Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, and even Barack Obama increased the pressure on Biden to withdraw from the race. This seems to have turned the tide in favor of Biden. It was stated that he changed from being obstinate to being open to hearing reasons and eventually withdrew from the contest.
Ultimately, it appears that the pressure paid off, as Biden has complied with his party’s demands. But will history remember him? What about his heritage? As one long-time Biden ally told NBC News: “Here is a man who has always talked about dignity. And what was happening to him in a very public setting was undignified. Where does the president go to get his dignity back?”
