White House and campaign aides for President Joe Biden were reportedly left in shock after finding out “by tweet” that he had withdrawn from the presidential race.
One Democrat explained to Politico that aides were “finding out by tweet” that Biden had announced he was not going to seek another term as president.
“We’re all finding out by tweet,” the Democrat source told the outlet. “None of us understand what’s happening.”
Biden announced in a post on X that it had “been the greatest honor” of his life to “serve” as the president of the United States, but that he believed it was “in the best interest” of his party and the country if he backed down from seeking another term as president.
In a separate post, Biden wrote that he was offering his “full support and endorsement” for Vice President Kamala Harris “to be the nominee” for the Democratic Party.
“My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden wrote. “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. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee for our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”
Several minutes after Biden’s initial post announcing that he would not be seeking another term as president, the Biden-Harris campaign sent out an email calling on people to endorse Biden and Harris’s “100-Days Agenda.”
Democrats such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), former President Bill Clinton, and Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) have issued statements of support for Harris to be the party’s presidential nominee.
