“He looks forward to finishing his term and delivering more historic results for the American people,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates told news outlets in a statement.
Mr. Bates said that the president has already delivered strong economic growth and grown the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. He said that the president’s agenda in the final months of the term includes lowering costs, creating jobs, and protecting Social Security.
“And he’ll keep fighting to protect Americans’ freedoms from radical abortion bans and attacks on the rule of law,” Mr. Bates said.
President Biden, whose term ends in January 2025, announced on social media on July 21 that he was pulling out of the 2024 race.
“I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as president for the remainder of my term,” the president said.
He also said he was endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris.
Following the announcement, some Republicans called for the president to resign.
“If Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as President. He must resign the office immediately,” Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, said in a statement.
Others said that Ms. Harris and administration officials should remove President Biden from office under the U.S. Constitution’s 25th Amendment. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) said she'd be introducing a resolution to that effect.
“If Joe Biden does not have the cognitive ability to seek reelection, he does not have the cognitive ability to serve the remainder of his term,” Ms. Mace said on social media.
The 25th Amendment lets the vice president and a majority of Cabinet members declare that the president cannot carry out his job. Such a declaration results in the vice president becoming acting president.
Other lawmakers, including Sen. Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.), said during cable television appearances on July 21 that President Biden should remain in office for the rest of the term.
“I want him to be the president in the last five months of this presidency of his term to do what he can do is unite our country, to calm down the rhetoric, and be able to focus attention to peace in the world,” Mr. Manchin, a former Democrat, told CNN.
President Biden has no public events scheduled between July 22 and July 28, according to the White House press office. He was scheduled to receive his daily briefing on July 22.
