With An Eye On His Legacy, Biden Addresses The Nation

This episode centers on President Biden's speech as he formally announces his decision not to seek reelection, focusing on his reasons and the implications for the future of American democracy.

1. Biden views stepping aside as a necessary act to protect American democracy.
2. He emphasizes his presidency's achievements in climate change, gun safety, and foreign policy.
3. Biden's speech serves as a reflection on his political career and a setup for his historical legacy.
4. The episode discusses the strategic and emotional aspects of Biden's announcement.
5. There is a focus on how Biden's decision impacts the Democratic Party and the 2024 presidential race.

1. Opening Remarks

Hosts introduce the episode and President Biden's announcement not to seek reelection. President Biden: "I believe my record as president...all merited a second term. But nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy."

2. Analyzing the Speech

Discussion on the content and tone of Biden's speech, highlighting its non-political yet deeply political nature. Tamara Keith: "He was making a case that he did what was best for democracy by stepping aside."

3. Legacy and Future Prospects

Exploration of Biden's political legacy and the potential implications for the Democratic Party and upcoming elections. Mara Liasson: "He said she was experienced, tough, and capable."

4. Closing Remarks

Summary of the episode's key points and a reminder for listeners to follow the podcast on streaming platforms.

• Reflect on the importance of democratic values in personal and community decision-making.
• Consider the impact of leadership decisions on collective welfare.
• Stay informed about political developments to make educated choices in elections.
• Engage in community discussions to foster a healthy democratic environment.
• Advocate for transparency and accountability in political leadership.

The president was emphatic about the threat that Donald Trump poses to American democracy. He said that after a lifetime of service, it was time to pass the torch.

This episode: voting correspondent Ashley Lopez, senior White House correspondent Tamara Keith, and senior national political correspondent Mara Liasson.

The podcast is produced by Casey Morell and Kelli Wessinger. Our intern is Bria Suggs. Our editor is Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

People

Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Kamala Harris

Companies

None

Books

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Guest Name(s):

None

Content Warnings:

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Ashley Lopez
Hey there. It's the NPR politics podcast. I'm Ashley Lopez. I cover voting.

Tamara Keith
I'm Tamara Keith. I cover the White House.

Mara Liasson
And I'm Mara Liasson, senior national political correspondent.

President Biden
I believe my record as president, my leadership in the world, my vision for America's future all merited a second term.

But nothing, nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy.

That includes personal ambition.

So I've decided the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation.

Ashley Lopez
That was President Biden from the Oval Office this evening, formalizing his announcement that he will not run for reelection. It is now 08:44 p.m. eastern time on Wednesday, July 24. And Tamara, for folks who weren't able to catch the address, what was the message of the president's speech tonight?

Tamara Keith
I think that this was a speech that tried to accomplish a couple of things. It was certainly about explaining why he stepped aside. And it was, in essence, trying to write the first version of what he thinks his legacy should be and how he feels that this choice should be remembered. And also, he was really setting up what he sees as the stakes for 2024. Now he was sitting behind the resolute desk in the Oval Office, which is a place where presidents go for very serious remarks. And this was not an overtly political speech, except that it was all about politics. But in essence, he was making a case that he did what was best for democracy by stepping aside and that nothing is more important. He didn't say Trump's name, but nothing is more important than Trump not winning.

Mara Liasson
I think it was more than an implication. He said, that America is at an inflection point. He asked people to answer the question, do we still believe in honesty, freedom, respect, justice, decency? He said, does character still matter? And he said, that the best way to save democracy, which is the reason he ran in the first place, was to step aside and pass the torch. I think this was a valedictory speech and a campaign speech wrapped together.

Ashley Lopez
Yeah. I mean, I know he's still, that the president is still recovering from his COVID infection, but I gotta say, you know, he still sounds pretty subdued. Stumbling a little bit. I wonder. I'll start with you, Mara. Like what you make of his delivery. I mean, this is a conversation we've been having for weeks now.

Mara Liasson
He showed the signs of age tonight as he showed them in the past. He finally came to accept this. Remember, he went through a process.

First he was defiant. He was not going to go anywhere. Then he was in denial. All the polls are wrong. And he knew that his campaign was collapsing, that he had no path to victory. And the trickle of Democrats asking him to step aside was going to turn into a tidal wave. And he didn't want to wait around for that humiliation. And he put his personal ambition aside and decided that a better candidate, a younger candidate, would have a better chance to beat Trump.

Tamara Keith
But if he had given this speech ten days ago, when he was still scrapping and scraping and doing everything he could to stay in the race, to convince his party that he had what it takes, that he had the fight, if he delivered this speech, then every one of those stumbles would have been picked apart and people would have said, wow, he's low energy, he doesn't have it.

Ashley Lopez
Very different stakes tonight.

Tamara Keith
Yeah. Yes, exactly.

Mara Liasson
And now he's a beloved figure in the Democratic Party. He's their George Washington who stepped aside when he didn't have to.

And, you know, now the question is, how will history treat his legacy? He tried to write the first draft of it, as Tam said tonight. He said he passed the biggest climate change law ever, biggest gun safety law.

He talked about other things he'd done, kept the western alliance together, expanded NATO. So we'll see. But he mentioned his vice president briefly. He said she was experienced, tough, and capable.

Ashley Lopez
Well, I want to go back to something President Biden brought up, his conviction that the threat that Donald Trump poses to democracy is very, very real.

President Biden
I've given my heart and my soul to our nation.

Like so many others, I've been blessed a million times in return with the love and support of the american people.

I hope to have some idea how grateful I am to all of you.

The great thing about America is here, kings and dictators do not rule. The people do.

Tamara Keith
I was looking at the screen to see if he was going to tear up, because the way he was talking about his feeling for the country, about how being president was the greatest honor of his life, it felt very emotional and heartfelt. And then that quick turn to the stage. Whisper and kings and dictators do not rule, the people do. In essence, this is the same message he said earlier, which is that he is arguing that what he did, this very difficult thing he did by stepping aside when he thought he still had fight in him, that he was putting democracy and american tradition and everything that's great about America ahead of his own personal ambition and ego.

There are a lot of people who are very frustrated with him that he didn't make this decision, this very difficult decision two years ago, but he didn't. And now the overwhelming outpouring is in line with what he is saying here, which is look at what he did for our nation. And they are trying, Democrats are trying to draw this contrast as the president did in the speech. President Biden put the country over himself.

What does Donald Trump do? He puts himself over the country.

All right.

Ashley Lopez
Well, we need to take a quick break. But first, if you're hearing this podcast and you aren't following us on Apple or Spotify or wherever you listen, please hit that follow button to stay up to date with our show. Let's take a break. Back in a moment.

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Ashley Lopez
And we're back. And, you know, we've talked a little bit about Biden's big legacy while in office these past four years. But, you know, as you mentioned, Mara, you know, he's had a very long career.

I mean, this might be part of, like, the defiance and the denial. Right? Like, stages of grief, grieving. A long career. And this stretches back to his time in Congress, where he probably spent most of his life. Can you talk to us about, like, what came before he even was vice president, before he even entered the White House?

Mara Liasson
Well, he's had an incredibly long career, a dramatic career with tremendous setbacks. You know, his wife and young daughter were killed in a car crash.

Later on, his son died of brain cancer. He has, he ran unsuccessfully for president, as he said in this speech. Even before all of that, he overcame a stutter. I mean, this is a guy that has had an improbable career. You know, he was elected to the Senate at age 29. He was sworn in right after the funeral of his wife and daughter. You can see those pictures of him looking absolutely shell shocked with his hand, one hand on the Bible, the other hand raised. So hes had a very, very long career. He was the vice president with Barack Obama. That was also an unlikely pick. He had run against Obama in the primary, and then he became president. And he passed a lot of bipartisan legislation, more than Barack Obama did. And he's been successful by a lot of traditional criteria for presidents in picking.

Tamara Keith
The first and picking the first black woman vice president.

Mara Liasson
Black woman vice president. Appointing the first black woman to the Supreme Court. You know, I think he has, you know, he has a record, a big, big, significant record.

Tamara Keith
One thing I've been thinking about this week is I went back and looked at the speeches he gave every other time that he quit. So when he dropped out of the presidential race in 1987, when he dropped out of the presidential race in 2008, and then again in 2015, when he decided not to run, and he announced he was not going to run because his son Beau had died and because the democratic establishment had really consolidated behind Hillary Clinton while he was trying to figure out what to do. And Washington just enmeshed in the grief. And every time he said, but I could run again, I'm gonna run again, or this isn't the last you're hearing of me. I'm not done. I'm not gonna be quiet.

But now, at 81 years old, this is it. I mean, we're gonna.

I predict we will hear several more goodbye speeches from President Biden. But there isn't another race for him. You know, this is the end of a 50 year political career, and it ended in this really unfortunate way and in a way that I guess is very relatable because often you don't know when it's time to turn off the lights.

Ashley Lopez
Yeah. Well, he does have about six months left on the job, though. The gig isn't over. Right. Did he make clear, tam, what he's going to be doing with the remainder of that time in office?

Tamara Keith
He talked about a lot of things, and essentially, it essentially is what he's been doing for the last year and a half, ever since Republicans took control of the House and the hope of big bipartisan legislation kind of faded into the sunset. He has been doing a lot of executive action. He's been doing a lot of implementation. You know, all of these big bills that were passed on his watch that he signed. Then it's up to the administration to actually put those things into effect, to, you know, do those grants for all of those climate projects to create the climate core, to fight with drug companies about the price of insulin. All of these things are like sort of the boring, nitty gritty part of governing. And that is what he said he's going to be doing for the next six months. That and also trying to get a ceasefire in Gaza, trying to maintain the alliance with the NATO countries, essentially, like, just keeps steering the ship and hoping that his vice president wins so that Republicans don't completely erase all of his accomplishments.

Mara Liasson
Can I just say one thing about what I think he's going to do in the next six months?

Tamara Keith
Yeah.

Mara Liasson
I think that he's going to try to do things that will help Kamala Harris get elected. He's going to shine a light on things that are popular. Obviously, foreign policy is the president's purview and he's going to continue working on that, supporting Ukraine, trying to get a ceasefire in Gaza, etcetera.

Think that any kind of public events, and, of course, the spotlight will be off of him and on Trump and Harris as they run. But any public events that he does will be to highlight things he thinks will help her win.

Ashley Lopez
Yeah. I wondered when he mentioned, you know, Supreme Court reform, I mean, he's a lame duck at this point. It would have to be just so that he could talk about the Supreme Court, which is something that could be very helpful to Democrats, you know, term.

Mara Liasson
Limits, which is what he's come out for. Yes. And some kind of ethical code. Yeah, that's something that's gonna take decades to get done, if ever. But, yes, he could do that.

Ashley Lopez
Well, another historic day in the books guys.

All right, well, let's leave it there for today. I'm Ashley Lopez. I cover voting.

Tamara Keith
I'm Tamara Keith. I cover the White House.

Mara Liasson
And I'm Mara Liasson, senior national political correspondent.

Ashley Lopez
And thank you for listening to the NPR Politics podcast.

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