
CV NEWS FEED // President Joe Biden delivered a short address to the nation from the White House on Thursday morning, one day after President-elect Donald Trump comfortably defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.
“For over two hundred years, America has carried on the greatest experiment in self-government in the history of the world,” Biden said at the beginning of his six-minute speech. “The people vote and choose their own leaders and they do it peacefully. And we’re in a democracy. The will of the people always prevails.”
Biden indicated that he had spoken with Trump on Wednesday “to congratulate him on his victory, and I assured him that I direct my entire administration to work with his team to secure a peaceful and orderly transition.”
“That’s what the American people deserve,” Biden added.
Furthermore, the president noted that he had also spoken with Harris on the same day after media outlets had confirmed her decisive loss.
“She’s been a partner and a public servant,” Biden stated. “She ran an inspiring campaign and everyone got to see something that I’ve learned early on to respect so much: her character.”
>> 2024 ELECTION: TRUMP DEFEATS HARRIS IN A ROMP <<
Biden said his vice president and two-time running mate “has a backbone like a ramrod; she has great character, true character.”
“The struggle for the soul of America since our very founding has always been an ongoing debate and still vital today,” he continued:
I know for some people, it’s a time for victory, to state the obvious. For others, it’s a time of loss. Campaigns are contests of competing visions. The country chooses one or the other. We accept the choice the country made.
“You can’t love your country only when you win,” the president stressed. “You can’t love your neighbor only when you agree.”
He called on the American people “to see each other not as adversaries but as fellow Americans. Bring down the temperature.”
“I also hope,” Biden continued, “we can lay to rest the question about the integrity of the American electoral system. It is honest, it is fair, and it is transparent. And it can be trusted, win or lose.”
>> HARRIS DELIVERS CONCESSION SPEECH <<
“I will do my duty as president,” Biden assured. “On January 20, we’ll have a peaceful transfer of power here in America.”
“Don’t forget all that we accomplished,” he told officials in his administration. “It’s been a historic presidency.”
“Much of the work we’ve done is already being felt by the American people,” Biden said. “We have legislation we passed that’s only now just kicking in.”
He also claimed that his administration is “leaving behind the strongest economy in the world.”
“Now we have 74 days to finish the term, our term,” added Biden. “Let’s make every day count.”
“Setbacks are unavoidable, but giving up is unforgivable,” he said:
Remember, a defeat does not mean we are defeated. We lost this battle. The America of your dreams is calling for you to get back up. That’s the story of America for over 240 years and counting.
>> 2024 ELECTION: TRUMP DOMINATES THE CATHOLIC VOTE <<
“We’re going to be okay,” Biden said. “But we need to stay engaged.”
“Above all, we need to keep the faith,” he concluded. “God bless you all, may God bless America, and may God protect our troops.”
Earlier this year, Biden had been the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee for over four months before dropping out of the race and endorsing Harris on July 21.
With his victory this week, Trump made history by becoming only the second president in American history elected to two non-consecutive terms – following Democrat Grover Cleveland in 1884 and 1892.
By extension, Biden will soon become only the second president in American history to have the same predecessor and successor – after Republican Benjamin Harrison who was both preceded and succeeded by Cleveland.
As Biden is set to depart office and turn power over to Trump in January, the sitting president will be the first one-term American president since George H.W. Bush.
