Joe Biden says he is ‘passing the torch’ to save US democracy

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Joe Biden cast his decision to “pass the torch to a new generation” as an effort to save American democracy in the president’s first public remarks since announcing he would not seek a second term.

In a speech to the nation on Wednesday evening, Biden announced that he would spend his remaining six months in the White House pushing his domestic and foreign policy agenda, as well as calling for significant reform of the US Supreme Court.

But he also offered a strong defense of his record and his decision to postpone his re-election campaign, saying: “I respect this office, but I love my country more.”

“Serving as your president has been the honor of my life, but in defending democracy under threat, I think that is more important than any title,” Biden added. “Nothing, nothing, can stand in the way of saving our democracy. Including personal ambition.”

Rare public speech from the Oval Office, coming just over 100 days from November presidential electionIt was Biden’s first appearance since he announced over the weekend that he would suspend his re-election campaign and endorse Vice President Kamala Harris to run in his place.

Biden’s decision comes after more than three weeks of panic and infighting among Democrats over whether the 81-year-old president is mentally or physically fit to serve another four years.

“The time has come and it is time for new voices, fresh voices, yes, younger voices,” he said on Wednesday. “That time and place is now.”

Biden thanked Harris for serving as his vice president and praised her as an “experienced, tough person.” [and] “a capable leader,” he added: “Now the choice is up to you, the American people.”

Biden’s exit from the presidential race means Harris will face Donald Trump at the ballot box in November. National polls show a very tight race, with Trump holding a slight advantage.

Biden did not mention Trump by name on Wednesday night, but warned that democracy is “at stake” in this year’s election.

“I believe that America is at an inflection point, one of those rare moments in history when the decisions we make now will determine the fate of our nation and the world for decades to come,” he said. “America will have to choose between forward and backward, between home and hate, between unity and division.”

Biden has stayed away from the public since he was diagnosed with Covid-19 last week and has been recovering at his Delaware retreat. He returned to the White House on Tuesday but did not hold any public events until his speech.

The president made clear on Wednesday that he intends to serve out the remainder of his term. He said he would spend the six months until his successor’s inauguration in January “focusing on doing my job as president.”

Biden also confirmed publicly for the first time that he would call for comprehensive reform of the Supreme Court, a move he described as “critical to our democracy.” The president did not elaborate on his reform plans, which could range from new laws to constitutional amendments, both of which would be extremely difficult to achieve in a deeply divided Congress.

He added that he would “continue to work to ensure America remains strong, safe, and a leader in the free world.” But the president will still face a number of foreign policy challenges in his final months in office.

Biden will hold a key White House meeting on Thursday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the administration pushes for a ceasefire in Gaza in a major foreign policy achievement that will cement the president’s legacy.

Biden’s decision not to seek re-election marks the beginning of the end of a distinguished Washington career that spanned more than half a century. First elected to the U.S. Senate in 1972, he spent more than three decades in the upper chamber of Congress before serving two terms as Barack Obama’s vice president, from 2009 to 2017.

“Serving this country for more than 50 years has been the honor of my life,” Biden said Wednesday. “Nowhere else on Earth could a stuttering kid from humble beginnings in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and Claymont, Delaware, one day sit behind the Resolute Desk.”

Additional reporting by Felicia Schwartz and Steff Chávez in Washington