Barack Obama supplied a heartfelt thanks to President Joe Biden for his years of service and applauded his choice to drop out of the race ― although he stopped in need of endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as the brand new Democratic nominee.
“Joe Biden has been one of America’s most consequential presidents, as well as a dear friend and partner to me. Today, we’ve also been reminded — again — that he’s a patriot of the highest order,” wrote Obama, who received the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections with Biden as his operating mate.
The previous president applauded the Biden administration’s accomplishments, together with passing landmark laws on gun security and local weather change, creating jobs, restoring “America’s standing in the world,” and guiding the nation out of the “chaos, falsehood, and division that had characterized Donald Trump’s administration.”
That observe document, he continued, gave Biden “every right to run for re-election and finish the job he started,” so his choice to drop out was certainly a tough one, Obama continued.
MANDEL NGAN through Getty Pictures
“For him to look at the political landscape and decide that he should pass the torch to a new nominee is surely one of the toughest in his life,” the previous president mentioned. “But I know he wouldn’t make this decision unless he believed it was right for America. It’s a testament to Joe Biden’s love of country — and a historic example of a genuine public servant once again putting the interests of the American people ahead of his own that future generations of leaders will do well to follow.”
One factor was notably absent from Obama’s remarks: an endorsement for Harris, whom Biden has advocated to switch him.
Former President Invoice Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton each endorsed the vice chairman because the nominee, saying Individuals should “fight with everything we’ve got to elect her.”
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), the primary Congressional Democrat to name on Biden to step apart earlier this month, referred to as for an open course of to find out the brand new nominee, saying Harris is the “leading candidate” however that the celebration “should be open to all talented individuals who wish to be considered.”
Harris mentioned she was “honored” to obtain Biden’s endorsement. “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 mentioned in a press release.
