Joe Biden cites 'obligation to the country' as he explains leaving 2024 presidential race

WASHINGTON, DC: President Joe Biden explained his reason for suspending his reelection campaign during his interview with host Robert Costa on 'CBS Sunday Mornings'.

Set to air on August 11, the incumbent is seen in a preview clip saying that it was his 'obligation' to the United States to keep former president Donald Trump away from the White House for a second term, which influenced his decision.

Biden announced his decision to step out of the presidential race amidst growing concerns over his mental acuity from across the aisle, on July 21. He had endorsed his Vice President, Kamala Harris, to be at the top of the Democratic ticket in his stead, an opportunity that the latter took in great stride.

Harris is now the Democratic presidential nominee for 2024 and has been making considerable gains in polls against Donald Trump nationally as well as in the battleground states. A poll by FiveThirtyEight put the Democratic nominee ahead of the GOP rival by 2.1 points in its national average, reported The Guardian on Friday.

Joe Biden's reason for stepping out of the 2024 race

"When I ran the first time, I thought of myself as being a transition president," Joe Biden told CBS, in his first interview since his announcement to drop out of the presidential race.

“I can’t even say how old I am – it’s hard for me to get it out of my mouth," continued the 81-year-old. "Although it’s a great honor to be a president, I think I have an obligation to the country to do what I — most important thing you can do. And that is — we must, we must, we must defeat Trump."

In another segment of the interview, the incumbent also expressed his doubt over the peaceful transfer of power if Trump lost the general election in November.

"If Trump loses, I'm not confident at all," he said, adding, "He means what he says. We don't take him seriously. He means it. All this stuff about if we lose, there'll be a bloodbath. Look what they're trying to do now. In the local election districts where people count the votes… they're putting people in place in states where they're gonna count the votes, right? You can't love your country only when you win."

MAGA supporters slam Joe Biden's explanation

Reacting to his comments on the New York Post website, MAGA supporters claimed that Joe Biden prioritized Democrats retaining the White House more than defeating Donald Trump. The following examples demonstrate the prevalent take.

"It’s not Trump. If he wasn’t running Biden would be saying the same thing about any Republican. The Dems want to stay in power no matter what. Trump is in the way. Any Republican would be in the way. Any opposition is an existential threat to democracy," wrote a person.

"His latest explanation still doesn't make sense. If defeating Trump is the sole goal (for the party not the people's interests) then why step down for Harris who was has never won an election, and quit running against him because she was so bad?" inquired another.

"It's so hypocritical that the Dems are saying only they can preserve democracy when they put in a candidate that no one in the country voted to be the nominee," jibed one user.

"What Biden said (the translation) we must defeat Trump really means that the democrats must defeat the 'outsider' to protect the DC (district of corruption) establishment from exposure," quipped a user.

"So, he woke up that day and suddenly realized he was old? 🤔 Sorry, Brandon, I'm not buying it," expressed another.

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