Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the US presidential candidacy is a political earthquake that gives Democrats hope. Republican candidate Trump makes a surprising demand.
After the dramatic withdrawal of US President Joe Biden as the leading candidate, the US Democrats are hoping for a turnaround in the election campaign against Republican Donald Trump. The most promising replacement candidate before the vote in November is current Vice President Kamala Harris, who is supported by Biden and numerous other party bigwigs.
“I am honored to have the President’s support and I intend to earn and win this nomination,” said the former California Attorney General and ex-Senator. Harris, 59, is the first black woman to be sworn in as US Vice President and is considered quick-witted and combative. She is 19 years younger than Trump, but has not always cut a good figure in the public eye at Biden’s side.
Emergency call after disastrous debate
The 81-year-old Biden, who was celebrated by his party colleagues as a selfless hero and a great US president, pulled the plug by withdrawing after a disastrous debate against Trump at the end of June. In recent days, under enormous pressure from the Democratic Party establishment, it has become increasingly clear that Biden would not recover from the consequences of the appearance.
Biden recently came under massive pressure not only from his own party because of his mental state, but his approval ratings also continued to fall. Donors withdrew. “Although it was my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country if I step down and focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden said in a letter to Americans. According to US media, millions in donations started pouring in again after Biden’s decision.
The withdrawal, just three and a half months before the fateful US election, marks a spectacular turnaround in an election campaign in which former President Donald Trump had calculated his chances against Biden after the failed assassination attempt a week ago. In almost all polls, Trump was well ahead of the incumbent. However, experts blamed Biden’s weakness rather than Trump’s strength for this.
Demonstrative unity for Harris
Replacing the designated leading candidate just months before the US election and just weeks before important deadlines in some states is a delicate maneuver for the Democrats. After Biden pledged his full support to his vice president, a number of other party bigwigs quickly spoke out in her favor – including governors Gavin Newsom (California), Josh Shapiro (Pennsylvania) and Roy Cooper (North Carolina), who are also considered possible candidates.
Harris received support from the left wing of the party from Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The Vice President also does not have to fear competition from the influential governor of Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer, after she stepped down. Former President Barack Obama, on the other hand, only spoke of his confidence that “an outstanding candidate” would be found.
A few hours after Biden’s withdrawal, the chances of Harris facing a serious intra-party competitor initially seemed slim. According to reports in some US media, Senator Joe Manchin, known as a troublemaker, is considering running. He probably has no chance. The Democratic Party’s nominating convention will take place in Chicago in mid-August. A narrative for the duel between the former prosecutor and the recently convicted criminal Trump should be obvious to the Democrats.
Trump fumes and speaks of “fraud”
Donald Trump seemed angry after Biden’s withdrawal. His team had invested time and money in “the fight against the fraudulent Joe Biden.” “Now we have to start all over again,” Trump complained on the Internet platform Truth Social, which he co-founded. The 78-year-old suggested that the Republicans should compensate him for this “fraud” of his party.
The 78-year-old was officially chosen as his party’s candidate at the Republican convention in Milwaukee last week. Senator JD Vance is running as the Republican vice-candidate. After the assassination attempt on him, the convention portrayed Trump as a politician who had been changed by the shooting and who now wanted to unite the deeply divided country.
In his own nomination speech, however, Trump fell back into old patterns, accused the Democrats of election fraud and insulted his political opponents. Trump and the Republicans had hoped to have an easy time against Biden in the November election – especially since Trump has achieved legendary status among his own fans after surviving the attack.
The crisis of the past few weeks
Since Biden’s disastrous performance in a televised debate against Trump, criticism of his age, which had long been a problem for voters, had boiled over. During the exchange of blows, the most powerful man in the world had regularly stumbled over his words. He lost his train of thought, stared into space with his mouth open and was often unable to finish his sentences properly.
Biden himself initially tried to talk his way out of it. He attributed his weak performance to fatigue as a result of strenuous trips abroad. At various appearances, he defiantly assured that he would not withdraw. But more blunders followed. In the end, the pressure from his own ranks became too great.
In recent days, Biden had retreated to his private home in Rehoboth, Delaware, after being infected with the coronavirus and had not attended any public events. During his forced break, he now decided to bow to pressure from his party colleagues.
Respect for Biden
Leading Democrats and heads of state and government from around the world paid tribute to Biden for the significant step. The leading Democrat in the Senate, Chuck Schumer, praised Biden as a great president and a remarkable person. “His decision was certainly not easy, but he has once again put his country, his party and our future first,” Schumer wrote in a statement. Today shows that Biden is “a true patriot and great American.” First Lady Jill Biden (73) commented on her husband’s withdrawal with two hearts on the X platform.
An election year like no other
Even before this greatest possible complication, this US election year was one that stood out on all levels, especially with regard to the Republican candidate. Trump is a convicted criminal running for the highest office in the state. He is the first ex-president of the USA to be found guilty in a criminal case – for concealing a hush money payment to a porn actress. This has not harmed the 78-year-old in the election campaign so far. There are other criminal proceedings against him – but these cases are unlikely to go to trial before election day.
The election campaign escalated a week ago when a gunman opened fire at a Trump event in Pennsylvania. Trump was injured in the ear in the attack, a spectator was killed and two others were wounded.
The most recent US election year in 2020 was already chaotic. Trump did not accept his election defeat against Biden at the time, but tried to reverse the election result using drastic means. His campaign culminated in a violent attack by his supporters on the US Capitol in which several people were killed.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
