The 81-year-old Biden announced in a July 21 post on X that he will step aside as the Democratic Party's nominee in the 2024 presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his replacement.
But Biden intends to remain in his role as president and commander-in-chief until the end of his term in January 2025. Biden – the oldest sitting president in America's history – will formally address the country this week.
"It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your president. And 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.
"I believe today what I always have: There is nothing America can't do – when we do it together. We just have to remember we are the United States of America."
Biden's decision to withdraw from the race followed his shaky performance against former President Donald Trump during the June 27 presidential debate organized by CNN. More than 30 Congressional Democrats exhorted the chief executive to abandon his plans for seeking a second term after the debate.
Earlier, a top advisor had warned Biden his campaign donations were at risk of drying up if he stayed in the race. According to several reports, film producer and Democratic insider Jeffrey Katzenberg informed the president that major donors were considering cutting funding due to doubts about the campaign's viability. Katzenberg, co-founder of DreamWorks Pictures, issued this warning in a July 17 private meeting with investors in Las Vegas. (Related: Top advisor warns Biden: Campaign donations are rapidly drying up.)
Before Biden's lackluster performance during the CNN presidential debate, his campaign had approximately $250 million. But with major donors doubting the president's chances in November, Katzenberg warned Biden that they have significantly reduced their donations.
VP Harris gets Biden's nod
Following his withdrawal, a new replacement is set to be nominated – with CNN noting that "logistically, Harris is the natural heir to the ticket."
The 81-year-old chief executive later confirmed his endorsement of Harris to replace him. "My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as president for the remainder of my term," he said.
"My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Harris as my vice president, and it's been the best decision I've made. I want to offer my full support and endorsement for [her] to be the nominee."
The second most powerful official in the land accepted this honor. Harris said in a statement: "I am honored to have the president's endorsement, and my intention is to earn and win this nomination."
Biden is the first sitting president to give up his party's nomination for reelection since President Lyndon Johnson in March 1968. His departure from the race leaves the Democratic Party in an unprecedented situation, with only a month until the Democratic National Convention and less than four months until the November 5 presidential election.
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Watch this Newsmax report about President Joe Biden's announcement regarding his withdrawal from the presidential race.
This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com.
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