‘I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my career. But I gave my best to you,’ Biden said in an emotional address, passing the torch to Kamala Harris.
First Lady Jill Biden waves with her husband, President Joe Biden, at the end of the first day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Aug. 19, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times
CHICAGO—President Joe Biden was preparing to deliver an acceptance speech for the presidential nomination at this year’s Democratic Party convention before he abruptly announced his decision to exit the 2024 race about a month ago.
Instead of taking the stage as the party’s nominee for a second term, he delivered an emotional speech on the first night of the convention on Aug. 19, passing the torch to Vice President Kamala Harris and bidding farewell to his 50-year political career.
“It’s been the honor of my lifetime to serve as your president. I love the job, but I love my country more,” Biden said during his remarks, making the case for his decision to exit the presidential race.
“All those people who said I should step down, that’s not true,” he said, responding to speculation that he was forced to step aside. “We love our country more, and we need to preserve our democracy.”
Following an introduction by his daughter Ashley Biden, he took the stage, hugged her, and wiped away his tears with a tissue.
The president was greeted by a standing ovation and enthusiastic chants of “Thank you, Joe” and “We love Joe,” which lasted for about five minutes before he began his remarks.
Biden’s decision to step aside marked the first time that a sitting president had withdrawn from a presidential race since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968.
Now Biden’s political career, which spanned decades and included serving as a senator from Delaware and as vice president under President Barack Obama, will come to an end in January 2025.
“For me and my family, there’s a song that means a lot to us. It captures the best of who we are as a nation. The song is called ‘American Anthem,’” Biden told the crowd.
Biden quoted the song, saying, “America, America, I gave my best to you.”
He continued: “I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my career. But I gave my best to you. For 50 years, like many of you, I’ve given my heart and soul to our nation.”
Biden appeared on stage at 11:25 p.m. EDT, later than anticipated after delays and cancellations that the Democratic Party blamed on “raucous applause interrupting speaker after speaker.”
Much of Biden’s speech took on a campaign-style tone, emphasizing his policies and accomplishments while in office and asserting that he led the country “in the right direction.”
“Because of you, we’ve had one of the most extraordinary four years of progress ever. Period. When I say we, I mean Kamala and me,” the president said.
Toward the end of his speech, he reiterated his support for Harris as the Democratic Party nominee, calling her and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff “people of character.”
In a whirlwind few weeks after Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race on July 21, Harris secured the Democratic nomination in a virtual roll of delegates, which concluded on Aug. 5. The next day, Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate.
“Selecting Kamala was the very first decision I made when I became our nominee. And it was the best decision I made in my whole career,” Biden said.
“She’ll be a president we can all be proud of. And she will be a historic president who puts her stamp on America’s future.”
Biden pledged to continue working to get Harris and Walz elected.
“I promise I’ll be the best volunteer [the] Harris and Walz camp have ever seen,” he said.
Democrats who gathered for the convention in Chicago said they had seen renewed energy after Harris stepped into the presidential race.
“There is tremendous excitement,” Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) told NTD, sister media outlet of The Epoch Times. “I just finished about eight days of campaigning around Virginia, where I was in all 11 of our congressional districts, doing events, and the enthusiasm is just palpable.”
Olivia Navarro, a delegate from San Jose, California, told The Epoch Times, “It’s just like another wind beneath our wings.
“We are excited and energetic to support a woman of color and to break that barrier once again. We did it with Obama, and now we’re going to do it again with Kamala.”
‘Getting Frustrated’
In a statement on July 21, Biden said, “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.”
The 81-year-old president had previously said he had no intention of leaving the race and assured the public for weeks that he would remain the Democratic nominee following his June 27 debate with former President Donald Trump. However, he later reversed his position amid significant pressure from some donors and elected Democrats who had come to believe that he would not win reelection.
During a July 8 interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Biden voiced his frustration toward those who urged him to step aside, particularly party elites, pundits, and donors.
“I’m getting frustrated by the elites,” he said. “Any of these guys that don’t think I should run, run against me. Announce for president, challenge me at the convention.”
After announcing his decision to withdraw from the race, Biden reportedly voiced frustration with party elites, particularly former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
In a recent interview with The New Yorker, Pelosi was asked if her relationship with Biden will endure.
“I hope so. I pray so. I cry so,” Pelosi said in response. “I lose sleep on it.”
After his convention speech, Biden briefly spoke with reporters at the airport before departing Chicago.
When asked if he was still mad at Pelosi or if he had spoken to her, he said: “No, I haven’t spoken to her. No one made my decision but me. No one knew it was coming.”
Pelosi was seen during Biden’s speech at the convention, chanting “We love Joe” with the audience.
Criticism
The Trump campaign criticized Democrats for focusing solely on the former president while providing “no vision or solutions to our nation’s problems.”
“They would rather talk about President Trump than the problems facing our nation due to Kamala Harris’ failures,” the campaign said in a statement on Aug. 20.
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) expressed some criticism of the Democratic Party. He told The Epoch Times that the party has “not done a good job” of listening to everyday Americans who “deserve to be heard.”
Phillips briefly ran a longshot campaign against Biden, primarily questioning the candidate’s age and fitness for another term.
“If you’re in politics and you’re not a good listener, you’re going to eventually lose,” he said.
“And I think [Kamala Harris] and Gov. Walz have to listen, have to understand people’s concerns, whether it’s border security, our economy, national security, immigration system—these are real.”
‘Changing of the Guard’
Before Biden’s speech at the convention, Harris made a surprise appearance on the convention stage on the night of Aug. 19 to honor Biden.
“Joe, thank you for your historic leadership, for your lifetime of service to our nation, and for all you will continue to do. We are forever grateful to you,” the vice president said in brief remarks.
Some Democrats praised Biden for his speech in interviews with The Epoch Times.
“President Biden is an American institution,” Philadelphia City Council President Kenyatta Johnson said. “I saw the changing of the guard, and it’s a little emotional watching him give his farewell speech.”
“It’s pretty incredible, and it’s pretty selfless,” said Dan Ahlers, executive director of the Democratic Party of South Dakota.
Piyush Seth, platform delegate from Pittsburgh, said, “The old Democrats, which I’ve been a part of for a long time, are passing the torch to the new Democrats, and it’s going to make a difference.
“It was a very smooth transition.”
Helen Kyle, a Virginia delegate, expressed optimism for this year’s election but urged the Harris–Walz team to effectively communicate their plans for achieving a peace deal in Gaza and reducing everyday expenses.
Travis Gillmore, Jackson Richman, and Arjun Singh contributed to this report.