Vice President Kamala Harris praised President Biden on Monday for his accomplishments in the first few years of his term, claiming he has done more than other presidents and with less time than they had.
“In one term, he has already surpassed the legacy of most presidents who have served two terms in office,” she said in opening remarks at the White House’s event for National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship teams.
Biden announced his decision to step aside and suspend his 2024 presidential campaign after significant pressure mounted for him to do so. “It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your president,” he wrote in a letter posted to X, formerly Twitter, on Sunday. “While it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interests of my party and the country for me to stand down and focus solely on fulfilling my duties as president for the remainder of my term.”
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The president endorsed Harris as his successor after announcing his decision. “I am honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination,” she responded in a statement.
Harris’ remarks on Monday were the first after she accepted Biden’s endorsement, making her intention to be the 2024 Democratic nominee known.
She complimented the president, specifically for “his honesty, his integrity, his commitment to his faith and his family, his big heart and his love, deep love of our country.”
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“I am first-hand witness that every day our president, Joe Biden, fights for the American people. And we are deeply, deeply grateful for his service to our nation,” she added.
The vice president also told attendees that Biden wanted to attend the event, adding, “He is feeling much better and recovering fast, and he looks forward to getting back on the road.”
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Biden tested positive for COVID-19 last week, according to the White House.
Harris also announced on X that she would be heading to the campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, to say hello to the staff during her first full day of campaigning for president. “One day down. 105 to go. Together, we’re going to win this,” she wrote.
While some Democrats stopped short of endorsing Harris as Biden had on Sunday, a plethora of high-profile endorsements for her poured in on Monday morning, many of which were from those being speculated to challenge her. Without a prominent challenger thus far, Harris could be poised to have the party coalesce around her as the nominee.
