Joe Biden promised to continue his work to defend Ukraine and strengthen NATO, writes ‘s US reporter Juri von Bonsdorff.
Juri von Bonsdorff, U.S. journalist
Relinquishing power is neither easy nor common.
It has been more than half a century since the last American president voluntarily relinquished his powers.
It was painful Even for Joe Biden.
Over the course of three and a half years, he had been struck by the arrogant certainty that he had the best skills to defeat the forces of evil threatening the nation and the entire world.
That belief led to a certain kind of blindness.
Biden himself did not see how his own strength was running out – and if those close to him did, they did not want to tell him.
However, on June 27, in front of the entire nation, the truth was revealed in a humiliating way.
The weak and fragile statesman could not get an intelligible word out of his mouth during the TV debate, and the competing candidate, Donald Trumpate his lunch, as they say in the US.
There was no going back from the performance that shocked the entire nation, and that’s why Biden sat in front of the cameras on Wednesday night to explain why he gave up the presidential race.
He said he understood that it is time to pass the baton to his juniors and unite the Democratic Party.
– I believe that my results, my leadership in the world and my vision for the future would have justified a second presidential term. But nothing should stand in the way of saving democracy, including my own goals, a tired and heavily made-up Biden said.
Biden did not in his speech referred to his own mental or physical alertness at all. He sought to portray his decision as a selfless sacrifice for the nation.
It had at least a partially false-sounding chord.
In reality, Joe Biden only gave up out of necessity when the money and party support was taken away from him.
On the other hand, there was also a touch of truth in Biden’s words.
He could have clung to his candidacy, for which he had a mandate won in the primaries.
But after mulling it over for a while, he accepted the facts and gave up.
In a similar situation, Donald Trump tried to stay in power by means that have led to criminal charges.
If you ask Biden’s allies, that’s exactly the difference between a man who believes in democracy and a leader who doesn’t care about it.
After getting over the part of the speech that embarrassed him, Biden’s eyes lit up with a familiar fire.
The outgoing president has still half a year left in the presidential term – and he promised to continue his work, among other things, to defend Ukraine and strengthen NATO.
Biden was surely well aware that this might be the last time he had the undivided attention of the entire nation, however.
There was not the slightest doubt as to how he would use that opportunity.
– History is in your hands, Biden said, repeating the biggest theme of his entire presidency.
– In America, power lies with the people, not with kings or dictators, he continued and reminded that in the fall it is time to choose which direction the country wants to move.
Joe Biden’s political legacy will be tarnished many more times.
But it is clear that the fall presidential election will be one of the most important indicators.
Although the result of the election is now more Horrible Harris than in Biden’s hands, a defeat for Donald Trump would mean a defeat in the self-proclaimed battle for the “soul of America”.
It would probably be a harder setback for Biden than the slightly embarrassing end of his own career.