Biden's decision to leave on Sunday. His staff knew a minute before the public did
WASHINGTON: On Sunday at 1:45 p.m., President Joe Biden's staff was notified that he is withdrawing from the 2024 race. This message was announced at 1 hour and 46 minutes.
Biden never intended to drop out of the race: Until he decided to drop out on Sunday, he was all in.
His campaign is planning fundraisers and events and setting up tours for the next few weeks. But while Biden has been publicly questioned and has insisted he will stay in the race, he has quietly reflected on the dangers of the past few weeks, his three-year presidency and his half-decade career. in politics. .
In the end, it was the president's decision alone, and he did so quietly, from a vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, sick with COVID-19, the first woman with him as he spoke it was with a small group of people. been with him for decades.
“This is one of the hardest decisions he's ever made,” said Sen. Chris Coons, D-Delaware, the president's closest ally in Congress, who spoke with him on Sunday. “I know he wants to fight and continue and show that he can beat Donald Trump again, but when he hears more about him, I think he's fighting for what's best for the country,” he said. Coons in an interview. with the Associated Press.
This story is based on interviews with more than a dozen people familiar with the president's thinking during the weeks, days and hours in which he made his decision. They spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss private discussions.
Decide to leave the race
It was only on Saturday evening that Biden began to conclude that he would not run for re-election. He began writing letters to the American people.
Biden had been away from the campaign for a few days, self-isolating due to COVID-19, when it all started to sink in – his chances of defeating Donald Trump with the majority of his party in open rebellion, sought to attack. pushing him out of the race — not to mention lingering voter concerns about his age that have been exacerbated by a terrible debate.
Biden was at his beach house with some of his and Jill Biden's closest aides: chief strategist Mike Donilon, adviser to the president Steve Ricchetti, White House deputy chief of staff Annie Tomasini, and Anthony Bernal, senior adviser to the first lady.
On Sunday, his decision was frozen. He has spoken repeatedly with Vice President Kamala Harris, whom he supports. He introduced White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, and his assistant and campaign chair Jen O'Malley Dillon.
A small group of senior advisers from the campaign and the White House gathered for a call at 1:45 p.m. to convey Biden's decision, while releasing a social media statement a minute later. campaign workers are behind.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And although I have planned to run for re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country that I step down and focus on fulfilling my duties as president for the remainder of my term,” Biden wrote.
About half an hour later came the public vote in favor of Harris. It was a well-crafted strategy to give full weight to the president's first statement, and to set a deadline before moving on to the next step.
“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement to Kamala as our party's nominee this year,” Biden said in another post on X.
Elizabeth Alexander, Jill Biden's communications director, said that “until the last minute of the decision that was the only one she could make, she supported whatever path she chose.
“He is the biggest believer, champion, and always by her side, in a reliable way that only a husband of almost 50 years can have,” Alexander said.
About the debate
It wasn't as if all was going well before the June 27 debate. In an August 2023 poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 77 percent of American adults said Biden was too old to succeed for four terms. additional year. Not only did 89 percent of Republicans say so, but 69 percent of Democrats did as well.
And it didn't get any better in April, when half of American adults thought Biden's presidency was hurting the country on issues like cost of living and immigration.
But Biden insisted — for himself, for the country, for his supporters — that he would be able to carry voters if he went out there, told people about his record, explained it to them. . Talked to them. Looked them in the eyes.
He had a lifetime of experience that told him that if he stuck to it, he would win. His campaign was so confident, in fact, that they arranged to go around the Commission on Presidential Debates to set up a series of debates against Trump under the new code.
This led to the debate on June 27 that led to Biden's downfall. Biden gave a nonsensical answer, trailing off in mid-sentence and appearing to stare blankly in front of the audience of 51 million. Perhaps most distressingly for other Democrats, Biden has not followed through on Trump's many lies about his involvement in the violence surrounding the January 6, 2021, abortion-rights uprising. or immigration.
Biden and his team blamed the night on several different things. He was sick. He passed out jet lagged. He needed more sleep. That night he opened the door for his party to push him out.
Slow acceptance
Biden has fought publicly and privately to stay in the race. He worked to convince the voters that he would participate for another four years. He's upset with Democrats who have come out against him, but even more so with leaks and anonymous sources reporting on how former President Barack Obama and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi operate. to get rid of him.
He seems to have won twice; the voices of the opposition seem to have died down. He had a well-received speech interspersed with television interviews and a highlight-reel day of press conferences where he demonstrated his understanding of politics but also made a few tricks up his sleeve.
But the doubt did not go away.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer invited top Biden staffers to a July 11 meeting to discuss his concerns. It didn't go well. Senators expressed concern, and almost none said they trusted the president. But even after that, Schumer worried that Biden wouldn't make it.
After the meeting, Schumer called House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, former Nancy Pelosi, and former President Obama. Schumer decided that day to request a meeting with Biden.
At the July 13 meeting in Rehoboth, Schumer told Biden that he was there for love and passion. And he made a special appeal focusing on Biden's legacy, the future of the country and the impact of the top ticket in congressional races – and the potential impact on the Supreme Court. On the same day came the assassination attempt on Donald Trump.
Schumer told the president he didn't expect to make a decision right away, but he hoped Biden would think about what he said, according to a person familiar with the conversation.
Biden replied, “I need another week,” and the two men embraced.
decision on Sunday
Smoke filled the front until Biden pulled on the emergency brake.
The president lost his voice, but is recovering well and his doctor sent a public update shortly before 1:00pm on his condition. His inner circle decided to release the statement to X on Sunday, instead of letting him go out for several days before he prepares to address the nation, which he hopes to do early this week.
Much of his campaign was a blind one, and of course little has changed since he left. In the hours after the announcement, Biden's campaign website indicated that he was still running and that KamalaHarris.com was still active on Biden's page.
Even Harris' statement announcing his intention to succeed Biden was sent from “Joe Biden for President.”
After the public announcement, Zients made calls to senior staff, sent emails, and spoke to members of Biden's cabinet, stressing to them that nothing had changed in terms of It is a matter of administration and the administration still has a lot to do. work, according to two people familiar with the message. And the president also made a special appeal.
“Team – I want to make sure you see the attached letter from the president,” Zients wrote in a staff email. “I couldn't be more proud to work for President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and the American people – with all of you, the best White House team in history. There is much to be done — and as President Biden said, 'there is nothing America can't do — when we do it together.'”
Vermont Sen. Peter Welch, a Democrat who called on Biden to bow out, was with his wife when the news broke, saying he was momentarily “shocked.” The Elders talked to each other and asked if it really happened.
Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal held an event in his home state, and there was a standing ovation for him when it was announced to the crowd that Biden would not run, he said.
There was a sense of excitement and energy in the crowd “that was completely lacking,” Blumenthal said.
“It's also, let's be honest, a sense of relief,” he said. “And a sense of respect for Joe Biden.”
On Sunday evening, Biden officially replaced Harris as president.
O'Malley Dillon told campaign staff that his job was safe, as the campaign shifted to Harris.
