Joe Biden’s first chance to define his legacy came in a rare televised address from the Oval Office on Wednesday night.
It was his first public speech since he abruptly ended his re-election campaign on Sunday.
Biden highlighted his achievements, his humble beginnings, and praised the American people, emphasizing that the future of American democracy lies in their hands.
However, despite his promise to always be honest with Americans, he didn’t directly address the biggest question: why he became the first incumbent president to abandon a re-election bid just months before voting starts. Instead, he hinted at it and talked around it, leaving Americans to read between the lines. “In recent weeks,” Biden said, “it’s become clear to me that I need to unite my party.”
He echoed a growing sentiment among Democrats that it was time to “pass the torch” to a new generation.
Biden listed his accomplishments and argued they deserved a second term but added, “nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy – and that includes personal ambition.”
He didn’t explicitly state the harsh reality that he resigned because it was clear he would lose to Donald Trump in November, an outcome his party views as catastrophic.
Trailing in the polls, embarrassed by a poor debate performance, and facing growing calls within his party to step aside, there was no clear path to a Biden victory.
While Biden refrained from saying it, Trump had no such reservations.
At a rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, hours before Biden’s address, Trump said Biden dropped out because he was losing badly.
Trump then attacked Kamala Harris, the new presumptive Democratic nominee, calling her a “radical left lunatic” and the “ultra-liberal driving force behind every single Biden catastrophe.”
Republican groups are heavily targeting Harris in key battleground states, aiming to define her on their terms. Research by the Associated Press indicates that Trump’s side plans to outspend Democrats 25-to-1 over the next month.
One Republican ad accused Harris of covering up Biden’s “obvious mental decline.”
Biden’s speech was a prime opportunity to rebut these attacks and address concerns about his ability to fulfill his presidential duties, but he largely passed on it.
He briefly praised Harris, calling her “experienced, tough, capable” and an “incredible partner,” but spent more time discussing Benjamin Franklin than his vice-president, who he endorsed on Sunday and who will carry his legacy forward.
With little support from Biden, Harris and her team must decide how to respond to the Republican attacks.
Biden may have another chance to support his former running mate at the Democratic convention in Chicago next month.
However, this is a delicate time for Harris, as her campaign is just beginning and Americans are still getting to know her.
Biden might have avoided being overly political in what could be his final Oval Office address, but his legacy now hinges on Harris’s success or failure.
Her performance will determine whether history views Biden as a noble figure who sacrificed for his party or someone who jeopardized his party by holding onto power too long.
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