Joe Biden let the word go forth last night that he was in this race to win it. He would fight to the death because democracy was on the ballot. The president was going to prove all the naysayers wrong. Biden 2024 was going full bore, even though the president was recovering from COVID. Twenty-four hours later, the campaign was over. Biden quit, and aides were left scrambling. Most found out about the president’s decision on social media (via Politico):
President Joe Biden's announcement stunned White House and campaign aides, who up until this afternoon were insisting that he would stay in the race. Many of them, including some senior aides, first found out that was no longer the case by reading the letter that Biden posted on X.
“We’re all finding out by tweet,” said one Democrat familiar with the immediate reaction. “None of us understand what’s happening.”
In a sign of the abruptness of Biden's decision, the campaign blasted out a fundraising email for "Joe and Kamala" at 1:54 p.m. — eight minutes after Biden announced he was stepping aside.
Biden's announcement stunned White House and campaign aides, who up until this afternoon were insisting he'd stay in the race.
— POLITICO (@politico) July 21, 2024
"We’re all finding out by tweet,” said one Dem. “None of us understand what’s happening.” https://t.co/VHphH6HPNL
https://t.co/BIoCEcrbQW pic.twitter.com/uCAXYnwN1b
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) July 21, 2024
White House aides found out Biden was dropping out by reading 𝕏.
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) July 21, 2024
Joe Biden has just announced he’s not running for re-election and will support Vice President Kamala Harris’s candidacy instead.
— Michael Shellenberger (@shellenberger) July 21, 2024
The announcement came as a shock to the people who work at the White House and to campaign aides, one of whom told Politico, "We’re all finding out… pic.twitter.com/NATz4OcR5Q
— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) July 21, 2024
The Democratic Party has come undone since June 27, when everyone who thought Joe could skate despite his apparent mental decline got a rude awakening when Donald Trump demolished the president in a debate. It sparked a low-key rebellion that grew in intensity when the president’s media rehabilitation tour through ABC News, NBC News, and BET proved utterly disastrous. Biden forgot the name of his defense secretary, Austin Lloyd, referring to him as the “black man” during the BET interview.
Biden plunged this nation into total chaos with his incompetence and overall bad policy. His exit was no exception.