President Biden took the stage on the first night of the Democratic National Convention for the last time as president – or as a presidential candidate – to cite the achievements of a single president and the threat to democracy as a reason. Kamala Harris should be replaced as president.
“It has been the honor of my life to be your president,” Mr. Biden said in a speech that ended his five decades as senator, vice president and president. “I like the job, but I love my country more. All this is talking about how angry I am at everyone (who) said that I should resign – it’s not true. I love my country more, and we have to preserve it. our democracy in 2024.”
He received a standing ovation from the crowd and took a moment to wipe his eyes after his daughter, Ashley, introduced him. It took a few minutes for the crowd to be silent, and his speech was interrupted at times by chants of, “We love Joe!” A loyal party filled the Chicago arena holding signs that said “We 💗 Joe.”
Five months ago, Mr. Biden secured the Democratic nomination and has every right to hope that at that time he will be here tonight to take up the mantle of the Democratic nominee for the second time. Instead, he asked the crowd, “Are you ready to vote for Kamala Harris and Team Walz as president and vice president of the United States?”
The president joked that he was too young to start working in the Senate, elected at age 29, and “too old” to remain president.
“I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my career, but I’m giving you my best,” he said.
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In July, in addition pressure to move as the nominee after the disastrous debate in June against former President Donald Trump, Mr. Biden conceded and announced that he would give up the nomination and endorse Harris.
The president warned Monday night about his decision to run for president after what he saw Charlottesville in August 2017, when a white supremacy rally turned into a clash that left one person dead and several others injured. He also recalled the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, when rioters stormed the Capitol and many tried to stop the certification of the election.
“I believed then and I believe now that progress can be made,” Mr. Biden said. “Justice may be served. And the best days are not behind us – before us. Now, summer. Winter has passed. And with a grateful heart, I stand before you now on this August night to reporting that democracy is over. Democracy has been accepted and now, democracy must be preserved.
“You can’t say you love your country only when you’re winning,” the president said, in a line he had used about former President Donald Trump but could now apply to him, albeit for different reasons.
Everyone in the room, the president said, is coming together in 2020 to save democracy.
“As your president, I am determined to keep America moving forward, not backward,” he said. “To fight hate and violence in all its forms.”
Mr. Biden celebrated the achievements of his presidency, listing – 60 million new jobs, a record high stock market, reduced inflation, the smallest racial wealth gap in 20 years and getting health insurance coverage for more Americans than ever before.
As the crowd chanted, “Thank you, Joe,” at one point, Mr. Biden said, “Thank you Kamala, too!”
Mr. Biden then followed his former opponent, Donald Trump, and Trump’s promise of infrastructure week.
“And he never did anything bad,” Mr. Biden said.
“Donald Trump calls America a failed nation,” the president said, adding that Trump is wrong to say that America has failed. “He said we lost. He’s the one who lost, he died wrongly.”
The president also noted violent crime has dropped across the country after spiking during the pandemic.
“Crime will continue to decline when we put prosecutors in the Oval Office instead of convicted felons,” he said, nodding to Harris’ career as a prosecutor.
Mr. Biden said he will continue to fight for the freedom to vote and the freedom to love whoever he chooses.
“MAGA Republic discovers the power of women in 2022,” he said. “And Donald Trump will discover the power of women in 2024.”
Addressing foreign concerns, the president said his team was “working around the clock” to secure a ceasefire deal in the Middle East and to seek aid for Palestinians in Gaza. Protesters who criticized Mr. Biden’s handling of the war were outside the convention, sometimes slowly making their way into the convention.
“The protesters in the street, they have a point,” he said. “Many innocent people were killed on both sides.”
The president said Harris and Walz know this nation must continue to be a place of possibility, not just for some, but for all, and Democrats must ensure that they win.
“I promise to be the best volunteer in Harris and Walz’s campaign,” the president said.
