PRESIDENT Joe Biden has been pictured in public for the first time since ending his reelection bid as he prepares to return to the White House.
Biden, who had been out of the public view since his Covid-19 diagnosis on July 17, gave reporters a thumbs up before entering Air Force One at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, on Tuesday afternoon.
REUTERS/Ken CedenoJoe Biden was pictured in public for the first time since he ended his reelection bid[/caption]
President Joe Biden boarded Air Force One at Dover Air Force Base as he’s set to return to the White HouseReuters
Joe Biden gave a salute as he entered Air Force OneREUTERS/Ken Cedeno
The president, 81, tested negative for Covid-19 and left isolation in Delaware six days after his positive diagnosis on July 17.
The White House physician updated the American public on Biden’s health on Tuesday, revealing the president’s “symptoms have resolved.”
As Biden hopped out of an unmarked black SUV, reporters pressed him with questions about his health, to which he replied he was “feeling well.”
Biden slowly walked up the steps of Air Force One and gave a thumbs up and a salute before entering the aircraft.
The president is expected to make the trip back to Washington DC and return for duty at the White House.
The sighting marked the first time Biden was seen in public since he formally handed over the mantle to Kamala Harris on Sunday when he endorsed her for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Biden was forced to pull out of a campaign event in Las Vegas on July 17 and flown to Delaware after testing positive for Covid.
The commander-in-chief was motorcaded to his vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, where he has been since.
The White House physician said Biden never developed a fever, and his vital signs and lungs remained normal.
President Biden is expected to address the nation on Wednesday evening about his decision to abandon his 2024 campaign.
The name has changed at the top of the ticket, but the mission hasn’t changed at all.
Joe Biden
He made a surprise call to Harris‘ campaign event in Delaware on Monday, marking his first comments since dropping out of the race.
Biden reassured his former campaign staff that he plans to complete his term as president after his shocking decision on Sunday blindsided White House officials.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Biden told campaign staffers, who have shifted their focus on Harris’ crusade.
“I know yesterday’s news was surprising and hard for you to hear, but it was the right thing to do.
“I know it’s hard because you poured your heart and soul into me to help us win this thing.”
Biden praised his vice president and urged his staffers to rally behind her campaign.
“The name has changed at the top of the ticket, but the mission hasn’t changed at all,” Biden added.
“And by the way, I’m not going anywhere. I’m going to be out there on the campaign with her, with Kamala.
“I’m going to be working like hell, both as a sitting president getting legislation passed as well as campaigning.
“You know, we still need to save this democracy, and Trump is still a danger to the community. He’s a danger to the nation.”
What happens next as Joe Biden drops out of the 2024 race?
President Biden has finally heeded calls to drop his bid for re-election, throwing the 2024 election into chaos. He has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris but naming a new Democratic nominee won’t be a simple process. Here’s what’s next after Biden’s stunning announcement.
Biden secured nearly 4,000 delegates by winning state caucuses and primaries earlier this year. He was set to officially be named the Democratic nominee at a virtual vote ahead of the Democratic National Convention, which begins on August 19.
Democratic party rules don’t allow Biden to simply pass his 3,896 delegates to Harris or another candidate.
Harris will now have to convince those nearly 4,000 delegates and 700 superdelegates to support her and name her nominee.
However, delegates are free agents who can choose to support whichever candidate they want – likely without input from voters at this stage since primaries and caucuses were already held.
All eyes are now on the previously planned virtual vote – where the Democratic party could choose a nominee before the DNC begins.
Biden’s endorsement of Harris will likely sway delegates and no one has publicly challenged her as a candidate – but delegates are not required to back her. Even if the virtual vote isn’t held, the party could still choose Harris or another candidate before the convention.
If Democrats don’t name their nominee before the DNC, it’ll be the first open and contested convention since 1968.
KAMALA HITS THE TRAIL
In the days since being endorsed as the Democratic presidential candidate by Biden, Kamala Harris secured the necessary delegates to win the party’s nomination.
As of Monday evening, Harris reportedly had the support of at least 2,668 delegates – way more than the minimum of 1,976 required to win on a first ballot.
The Harris campaign has also raised more than $50 million in donations.
The Democratic presidential candidate, 59, delivered a fiery speech at her campaign headquarters in Wilmington on Monday.
Harris lashed out at former President Donald Trump and compared him to the “predators, fraudsters, and cheaters” she had prosecuted during her time as attorney general in California.
Democrats have slowly united behind Harris’ presidential campaign.
Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Senator Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries joined the growing list of party members who have endorsed Harris.
Several of Harris’ potential rivals, including governors Gavin Newsom and Gretchen Whitmer, have endorsed the vice president.
“When I announced my campaign for President, I said I intended to go out and earn this nomination,” Harris said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Tonight, I am proud to have secured the broad support needed to become our party’s nominee, and as a daughter of California, I am proud that my home state’s delegation helped put our campaign over the top, I look forward to formally accepting the nomination soon.”
Full list of Democrats who have endorsed Kamala Harris
President Joe Biden
Gov. Roy Cooper, North Carolina
Gov. Gavin Newsom, California
Gov. John Carney, Delaware
Gov. Josh Green, Hawaii
Gov. Kathy Hochul, New York
Gov. Jay Inslee, Washington
Gov. Janet Mills, Maine
Gov. Phil Murphy, New Jersey
Gov. Jared Polis, Colorado
Gov. Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, New York
Sen. Chris Murphy, Connecticut
Sen. Mark Warner, Virginia
Sen. Raphael Warnock, Georgia
Sen. Tammy Baldwin, Wisconsin
Sen. Michael Bennet, Colorado
Sen. Sherrod Brown, Ohio
Sen. Laphonza Butler, California
Sen. Maria Cantwell, Washington
Sen. Ben Cardin, Maryland
Sen. Bob Casey, Pennsylvania
Sen. Chris Coons, Delaware
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, Nevada
Sen. Martin Heinrich, New Mexico
Sen. John Hickenlooper, Colorado
Sen. Mazie Hirono, Hawaii
Sen. Tim Kaine, Virginia
Sen. Mark Kelly, Arizona
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Minnesota
Sen. Ben Ray Lujan, New Mexico
Sen. Ed Markey, Massachusetts
Sen. Patty Murray, Washington
Sen. Jon Ossoff, Georgia
Sen. Alex Padilla, California
Sen. Gary Peters, Michigan
Sen. Jacky Rosen, Nevada
Sen. Brian Schatz, Hawaii
Sen. Tina Smith, Minnesota
Sen. Debbie Stabenow, Michigan
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Rhode Island
Sen. Ron Wyden, Oregon
Rep. Steny Hoyer, Maryland
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York
Rep. Nancy Pelosi, California
Rep. Mikie Sherrill, New Jersey
Rep. Elissa Slotkin, Michigan
Rep. Colin Allred, Texas
Rep. Gabe Amo, Rhode Island
Rep. Jake Auchincloss, Massachusetts
Rep. Becca Balint, Vermont
Rep. Nanette Barragan, California
Rep. Joyce Beatty, Ohio
Rep. Ami Bera, California
Rep. Don Beyer, Virginia
Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, Oregon
Rep. Jamaal Bowman, New York
Rep. Brendan Boyle, Pennsylvania
Rep. Shontel Brown, Ohio
Rep. Julia Brownley, California
Rep. Nikki Budzinski, Illinois
Rep. Cori Bush, Missouri
Rep. Yadira Caraveo, Colorado
Rep. Salud Carbajal, California
Rep. Andre Carson, Indiana
Rep. Troy Carter, Louisiana
Rep. Greg Casar, Texas
Rep. Sean Casten, Illinois
Rep. Kathy Castor, Florida
Rep. Joaquin Castro, Texas
Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, Florida
Rep. Judy Chu, California
Rep. Yvette Clarke, New York
Rep. Jim Clyburn, South Carolina
Rep. Steve Cohen, Tennessee
Rep. Gerry Connolly, Virginia
Rep. Joe Courtney, Connecticut
Rep. Jasmine Crockett, Texas
Rep. Jason Crow, Colorado
Rep. Danny Davis, Illinois
Rep. Madeleine Dean, Pennsylvania
Rep. Diana DeGette, Colorado
Rep. Rosa DeLauro, Connecticut
Rep. Debbie Dingell, Michigan
Rep. Veronica Escobar, Texas
Rep. Dwight Evans, Pennsylvania
Rep. Teresa Fernandez, New Mexico
Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, Texas
Rep. Bill Foster, Illinois
Rep. Lois Frankel, Florida
Rep. Maxwell Frost, Florida
Rep. Ruben Gallego, Arizona
Rep. John Garamendi, California
Rep. Mike Garcia, California
Rep. Sylvia Garcia, Texas
Rep. Jesus Garcia, Illinois
Rep. Daniel Goldman, New York
Rep. Jimmy Gomez, California
Rep. Josh Gottheimer, New Jersey
Rep. Raúl Grijalva, Arizona
Rep. Jahana Hayes, Connecticut
Rep. Steven Horsford, Nevada
Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, Pennsylvania
Rep. Val Hoyle, Oregon
Rep. Jared Huffman, California
Rep. Glenn Ivey, Maryland
Rep. Jeff Jackson, North Carolina
Rep. Jonathan Jackson, Illinois
Rep. Sara Jacobs, California
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, Washington
Rep. Hank Johnson, Georgia
Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, California
Rep. Bill Keating, Massachusetts
Rep. Robin Kelly, Illinois
Rep. Ro Khanna, California
Rep. Dan Kildee, Michigan
Rep. Andy Kim, New Jersey
Rep. Greg Landsman, Ohio
Rep. Rick Larsen, Washington
Rep. Barbara Lee, California
Rep. Summer Lee, Pennsylvania
Rep. Susie Lee, Nevada
Rep. Mike Levin, California
Rep. Ted Lieu, California
Rep. Seth Magaziner, Rhode Island
Rep. Kathy Manning, North Carolina
Rep. Lucy McBath, Georgia
Rep. Jennifer McClellan, Virginia
Rep. Betty McCollum, Minnesota
Rep. Morgan McGarvey, Kentucky
Rep. Jim McGovern, Massachusetts
Rep. Ann McLane Kuster, New Hampshire
Rep. Gregory Meeks, New York
Rep. Rob Menendez, New Jersey
Rep. Grace Meng, New York
Rep. Kweisi Mfume, Maryland
Rep. Gwen Moore, Wisconsin
Rep. Jared Moskowitz, Florida
Rep. Seth Moulton, Massachusetts
Rep. Kevin Mullin, California
Rep. Jerry Nadler, New York
Rep. Joe Neguse, Colorado
Rep. Ilhan Omar, Minnesota
Rep. Frank Pallone, New Jersey
Rep. Chris Pappas, New Hampshire
Rep. Bill Pascrell, New Jersey
Rep. Brittany Pettersen, Colorado
Rep. Mark Pocan, Wisconsin
Rep. Katie Porter, California
Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Massachusetts
Rep. Mike Quigley, Illinois
Rep. Delia Ramirez, Illinois
Rep. Jamie Raskin, Maryland
Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, Delaware
Rep. Deborah Ross, North Carolina
Rep. C.A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger, Maryland
Rep. Andrea Salinas, Oregon
Rep. Linda Sanchez, California
Rep. John Sarbanes, Maryland
Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, Pennsylvania
Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Illinois
Rep. Adam Schiff, California
Rep. Brad Schneider, Illinois
Rep. Hillary Scholten, Michigan
Rep. Bobby Scott, Virginia
Rep. Terri Sewell, Alabama
Rep. Brad Sherman, California
Rep. Adam Smith, Washington
Rep. Abigail Spanberger, Virginia
Rep. Melanie Stansbury, New Mexico
Rep. Greg Stanton, Arizona
Rep. Haley Stevens, Michigan
Rep. Marilyn Strickland, Washington
Rep. Eric Swalwell, California
Rep. Emilia Sykes, Ohio
Rep. Mark Takano, California
Rep. Shri Thanedar, Michigan
Rep. Terry Thompson, Missouri
Rep. Dina Titus, Nevada
Rep. Jill Tokuda, Hawaii
Rep. Paul Tonko, New York
Rep. Norma Torres, California
Rep. Ritchie Torres, New York
Rep. Lori Trahan, Massachusetts
Rep. David Trone, Maryland
Rep. Lauren Underwood, Illinois
Rep. Gabe Vasquez, New Mexico
Rep. Marc Veasey, Texas
Rep. Nydia Velazquez, New York
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Florida
Rep. Maxine Waters, California
Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, New Jersey
Rep. Jennifer Wexton, Virginia
Rep. Susan Wild, Pennsylvania
Rep. Nikema Williams, Georgia
Rep. Frederica Wilson, Florida
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