What Biden Should Have Said

Tonight, President Biden spoke to the nation in the wake of the Special Prosecutor’s Report. This is what he should have said:

“Good evening. This is a very difficult evening for me. I have come to an agonizing decision and I want to explain it to you.

Our country is facing the most consequential election in its history. Democracy is on the ballot. The election of Donald Trump will undermine the foundations of our treasured way of life. Donald Trump is an ignorant, self-absorbed wannabe dictator. He must be defeated. In fact, he must be trounced.

There is no question that my record as President has been exemplary. I have passed monumentally important legislation that so many said I could never do. But, my record of success is being swallowed up in a narrative about my being old and feeble. This narrative is wrong, dead wrong.

In the world of politics, though, because something is wrong often doesn’t matter. What does matter is what people think. The impression is more important than the reality. 

It appears that the American people are accepting the impression over the reality. The Special Counsel’s report today mistakenly reinforces that misconception. As a result, it places my candidacy in a precarious position. Because of the importance of this election, the country cannot afford to have the chance of defeating Donald Trump be precarious.

I want to run and I can run. However, there are times when a public servant’s personal desires must bow to the public they serve. For me, this is one of those times.

Accordingly, I have decided that I will no longer be a candidate for re-election as President of the United States. There are plenty of enormously capable and qualified people in the Democratic Party who can take my place and do what desperately needs to be done – defeat Donald Trump.

Thank you.”