President Joe Biden has revealed that he was not angry at all the people who said he should step down from the 2024 United States presidential race, adding that his love for his country and the need to preserve democracy convinced him to step down, CBS News reports.
Biden took the stage on the first night of the Democratic National Convention for the last time as president — or as a candidate for the presidency — to cite the accomplishments of his single presidential term and the threat to democracy as the reasons his vice, Kamala Harris, should succeed him as president.
“It’s been the honour of my lifetime to serve as your president,” Mr. Biden said in a speech that capped over five decades in office as senator, vice president, and president. “I love the job, but I love my country more. All this talk about how I’m angry at all those people who said I should step down — that’s not true. I love my country more, and we need to preserve our democracy in 2024.”
He received a thunderous standing ovation from the crowd and took a moment to wipe his eyes after his daughter, Ashley, introduced him. It took several minutes for the crowd to quiet, and his speech was interrupted at times by chants of, “We love Joe!” The party faithful filling the Chicago arena held up signs that said, “We Joe.”
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Five months ago, President Biden clinched the Democratic nomination and had been expected to be the one receiving the mantle of Democratic nominee for the second time. Instead, he asked the crowd, “Are you ready to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz as president and vice president of the United States?”
The president joked that he was too young to begin work in the Senate, elected at 29, and “too old” to remain as president.
“I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my career, but I gave my best to you,” he said.
In July, under increasing pressure to step aside as the nominee after a disastrous debate in June against former President Donald Trump, Mr. Biden acquiesced and announced he would give up the nomination and endorse Harris.
The president reminisced Monday night about his decision to run for president after what he saw in Charlottesville in August 2017, when white supremacist rallies devolved into clashes that left one dead and several others injured. He also recalled the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol, when rioters breached the Capitol and many tried to stop the certification of his election.
“You cannot say you love your country only when you win,” the president said, in a line that he has used about former President Donald Trump but now could apply to him, albeit for very different reasons.
“As your president, I’ve been determined to keep America moving forward, not going back,” he said. “To stand against hate and violence in all its forms.”
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