Biden's 2024 reelection bid meets its ultimate match: Time
When Joe Biden ended his reelection bid Sunday, he became the first president since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968 not to seek a second term — and the only president in U.S. history to surrender his party’s nomination after winning its primary.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President,” Biden wrote in a letter to his “Fellow Americans,” posted to his official social media accounts. “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.”
The singular nature of Biden’s decision reflected the singular nature of his dilemma. On March 31, 1968, LBJ said he would neither “seek nor accept” the Democratic presidential nomination because of the toll the Vietnam War had taken on him. But Biden’s withdrawal wasn’t due to some divisive issue. No laws had been broken. No scandal had been exposed.
The president’s problem was both more prosaic and more profound. His problem was time.
Everyone knows — has long known — that Biden, now 81, is the oldest person ever to occupy the Oval Office. He has been since his first day on the job. When Ronald Reagan’s second term ended on Jan. 20, 1989, he was still 16 days shy of his 78th birthday. Biden turned 78 two months before he was inaugurated.
But not everyone knew, or maybe not everyone was willing to accept, that time isn’t just another political obstacle to overcome. Its effects are inevitable, inexorable and, ultimately, self-evident. Once seen — as Biden’s decline was seen onstage during his debate last month with former President Donald Trump — they cannot be unseen. They cannot be spun away. They cannot be reversed.
So Biden could never recover. He tried, of course. Over the last 24 days, the president gave nearly a dozen interviews, attended nearly a dozen events and called in to nearly a dozen meetings with panicked Democrats. He sent a letter to lawmakers on Capitol Hill. He held the longest solo press conference of his presidency. “He’s tried ignoring [it and] soldiering on,” Politico recalled Sunday. “He’s tried being defiant and angry. He’s tried being humble.”
Nothing worked. First a few House members spoke up; some donors started to squirm. Then senators started to question Biden’s fitness. When the polls, both public and private, began to show key swing states trending toward Trump, imperiling down-ballot Democrats, the dam finally broke. Washington knew it was over as soon as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi got involved. “He wanted the Lord Almighty,” one Democratic strategist told The Hill. “Well, this is the Lord Almighty.”
In the days ahead, talk will turn from what Biden just did to what Democrats do next. In a separate post on social media, the president endorsed his vice president, Kamala Harris, to be the party’s new nominee — much as LBJ endorsed his vice president, Hubert Humphrey.
“My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made,” Biden wrote. “Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”
Will anyone challenge Harris? Or will the party close ranks around her? Will next month’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago be as chaotic as 1968’s? Or will fear of a second Trump term force Democrats to fall in line, and fast?
Before moving on, however, it’s worth lingering over the man who remains president — and who will continue to serve, as he made clear on Sunday, for the last six months of his term. In recent weeks, Donald Trump has commanded the national spotlight. He dodged a bullet; he held a convention. And while the entire Democratic Party melted down, his blunt attacks on Biden’s presidency went largely unanswered.
Now that is likely to change. In his letter to the nation, Biden told a story about the last few years that, so far, has not broken through. “Together, we overcame a once in a century pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression,” he wrote. “Now America has the strongest economy in the world.” He went on to list some of his proudest accomplishments: “lowering prescription drug costs for seniors”; “expanding affordable health care to a record number of Americans”; passing “the first gun safety law in 30 years”; appointing “the first African American woman to the Supreme Court”; implementing “the most significant climate legislation in the history of the world.”
Maybe voters will listen to that story now that someone else — someone younger — will be the one to tell it. Maybe not. But at the very least, they might consider what it took for Biden to arrive at this painful moment, and what it says about his character that he did.
Biden’s old boss, former President Barack Obama, probably put it best.
“Joe has never backed down from a fight,” Obama wrote Sunday. “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.”
“But I know he wouldn’t make this decision unless he believed it was right for America,” Obama continued. “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.”
The passage of time wears us down. But it also blesses us — some of us — with maturity. When Biden was inaugurated in 2021, I wrote that “his age” hadn’t been “the handicap his competitors hoped it would be”; it seemed, instead, to have matured him.
And what did that mean? At the time, the most accurate definition of maturity I’d found was a sign in a shop window: “Resist the urge to make it about you.”
“The point is not just that you aren’t the center of the universe,” I wrote. “The point is that you never really overcome the urge to act as if you are. The point is that the best you can do is resist it.”
In his inaugural address, Biden called on Americans “not to turn inward” but “to show a little tolerance and humility” instead. To realize they don’t always come first. To resist making it about themselves.
“Let’s begin to listen to one another again,” the president said then. “Hear one another. See one another. Show respect to one another. Politics doesn’t have to be a raging fire destroying everything in its path. Every disagreement — it doesn’t have to be a cause for total war.”
And now, as he resists that urge himself, Biden is going out the way he came in: by asking the same of us.
➕Read more
Read the full text of Biden’s letter announcing his decision.“I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down.” [Yahoo News]
Timeline: Biden exit caps tumultuous three weeks in U.S. politics. “Here’s a summary of the milestone events in a roller coaster period in U.S. politics.” [The Guardian]
Political reactions to Biden's decision.“America is a better place today because President Joe Biden has led us with intellect, grace and dignity. We are forever grateful," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said. [Reuters]
Americans react to Biden's historic decision. “Finally a brave act from a politician." [USA Today]
Obama calls Biden 'patriot of the highest order' after Biden drops out of 2024 race. “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.” [Yahoo News]
House Republicans say Biden must resign after ending reelection campaign. “If Joe Biden can’t run for re-election, he is unable and unfit to serve as President of the United States. He must immediately resign,” House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik said. [The Hill]
Now that Biden dropped out, what happens to his campaign funds? “If Vice President Kamala Harris is the new nominee, will she get access to those funds? If one of the other rumored Democratic options gets picked, can they use that money?” [Yahoo News]
FAQ: How will Democrats pick a new presidential nominee?“What’s next for the Democratic Party as they hurtle toward a convention and the November election against Republican nominee Donald Trump?” [Yahoo News]
Until 1968, presidential candidates were picked by party conventions — a process revived by Biden’s withdrawal from race. “The tradition of picking a nominee through primaries and caucuses – and not through what is called the ‘convention system’ – is relatively recent.” [The Conversation]
Who will replace Biden as the new Democratic nominee? “Here are some of the hypothetical Biden replacements being discussed — along with how they ranked among voters in a Yahoo News/YouGov poll conducted after the debate.” [Yahoo News]
Harris says she intends to ‘earn and win’ Democratic nomination. “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. We have 107 days until Election Day. Together, we will fight. And together, we will win.” [Yahoo News]
Harris: What to know about her as she seeks to replace Biden as the Democratic nominee. “A brief guide to her background, historic firsts and record as VP.” [Yahoo News]
Harris' 2020 campaign was a mess. If she ends up atop the ticket, this time could be a lot different.“Admirers say that Harris has grown in the job.” [NBC News]
Would America be ready for President Kamala Harris?“But from the start, there has been a hesitancy to fully embrace the country’s second-in-command, with some Democrats openly overlooking her.” [USA Today]
Democrats rally behind Kamala Harris in bid to avert divisive party convention.“Democratic donors who had pressured Biden to drop out of the race wasted no time in throwing their support behind Harris, the New York Times reported, quickly raising millions of dollars.” [Yahoo News]
Harris fans are sharing their support all over the internet.“Members of 'KHive' — a play on Beyoncé's 'Beyhive' fan club — are making fancams and memes of the vice president as she now seeks the Democratic nomination.” [Yahoo News]
