President Joe Biden retreated from the race for the presidency on Sunday after enduring a month of pressure orchestrated by Democratic leaders and benefactors to remove him.
“Serving as your President has been the utmost privilege in my life,” Biden drafted in a letter shared on X on Sunday. “Although my plan was to pursue re-election, I trust that stepping down is paramount for my party and nation, allowing me to concentrate solely on executing my presidential responsibilities during the remainder of my term.”
The letter did not delve into the Democratic Party’s next course of action, but Biden mentioned that he would “address the Nation later this week extensively about my choice.”
In the letter, Biden lauded Vice President Kamala Harris as “a remarkable ally” and subsequently endorsed her with his “complete support.” Should Harris assume office, she is expected to manage the $240 million campaign fund amassed over recent years, as per CNBC. Contributors and purportedly, Nancy Pelosi have shown support for a nomination process that is open in some way.
Biden’s unprecedented move concludes a remarkable three-week period that commenced with a debate against Republican contender Donald Trump towards the end of June. During that debate, Biden, whose age and physical well-being were already significant talking points in the election, occasionally appeared incomprehensible.
In the aftermath, contributors, editorial boards of newspapers, and officials started demanding his resignation.
Democratic megadonors such as Laurene Powell Jobs and Ron Conway started deliberating on alternatives to replace Biden before or during the Democratic National Convention, as reported by the New York Times.
“I have seen correspondences from individuals in Silicon Valley stating, ‘I will not contribute further until I am reassured,’” Reid Hoffman, the founder of LinkedIn and a Biden benefactor, informed WIRED earlier this month.
Numerous Democrats, including some of Biden’s key supporters, also expressed doubts about the president’s suitability as a future candidate and reportedly initiated campaigns to pressure Biden into withdrawing from the election. In subsequent television interviews post the debate, party leaders like representatives Nancy Pelosi and Jim Clyburn indicated it was reasonable to question Biden’s capability for office. “I think questioning, ‘Is this an incident or a state?’ is legitimate,” Pelosi stated in an MSNBC interview. Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer and House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries purportedly informed the president that party members harbored concerns about the impact on down-ballot races if Biden remained on the ticket. Others, such as senators Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, alongside several representatives, urged Biden to exit the election.
A brief pause in the upheaval occurred due to an assassination attempt on Trump, but disclosures that Pelosi and Schumer directly advised Biden they lacked confidence in his prospects for re-election hinted at the collapse of Biden’s political backing, appearing to herald the end. Pelosi also informed Biden confidentially about polls indicating an increasingly bleak outlook for Democrats with Biden at the helm, as per CNN.
The Democratic nominee will confront a rejuvenated Republican Party buoyed by the triumph of its populist faction and an allegiance with influential Silicon Valley investors like Elon Musk—reflected in the ascent of 39-year-old Peter Thiel protege J.D. Vance to the ticket as Trump’s vice president and successor.
“Untrustworthy Joe Biden was not competent to contend for President, let alone to govern,” Trump stated on Truth Social. Earlier, Vance tweeted, “If Joe Biden ceases his re-election bid, how can he justify continuing as President?”
“For now, I wish to extend my deepest appreciation to all those who labored diligently for my re-election,” Biden wrote.
This is an unfolding narrative.