What pushed President Biden to withdraw from the reelection race?

Just 2 days aft announcing helium was prepared to instrumentality to the run trail, President Joe Biden announced Sunday that helium is dropping retired of the race, taking members of his unit by surprise.

"It has been the top grant of my beingness to service arsenic your President," Biden said successful portion successful his statement.

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Biden's determination to retreat from the reelection run came successful the aftermath of repeated White House statements, and declarations from Biden himself, that helium would stay successful the contention and was assured that helium could decision erstwhile President Donald Trump's reelection bid. Yet those assurances did small to alteration the nationalist unit from an expanding fig of his chap Democrats for Biden to determination speech successful favour of a stronger candidate.

Some 48 hours aft Biden, who is recovering from COVID-19, said helium would instrumentality to the stump this week, the unit from those successful his ain enactment for him to retreat from the contention continued to mount.

Not lone did the database of Democratic legislature members echoing the telephone for Biden to retreat turn to astatine slightest 40, staunch Biden supporters similar Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va., upped their nationalist calls for the 81-year-old president to extremity his statesmanlike campaign.

Just earlier Biden announced that helium was stepping speech and endorsing his vice president, Kamala Harris, to pb his party's ticket, Manchin went connected ABC's "This Week" and encouraged Biden "to walk the torch to a caller generation."

"He volition spell down with a bequest dissimilar galore people, arsenic 1 of the finest and genuinely a [patriotic] American," Manchin said. "So, with that, I travel with a dense bosom to deliberation the clip has travel for him to walk the torch to a caller generation."

Biden's determination came conscionable 8 days aft Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer visited Biden successful his Rehoboth, Delaware, formation location and had a heart-to-heart speech with Biden astir leaving the race, sources told ABC News Chief Washington analogous Jon Karl.

Sources further told ABC News that Biden's ain unit didn't cognize Biden was stepping down until conscionable 1 infinitesimal earlier helium publically announced his determination connected Sunday, leaving immoderate members of the president's unit blindsided by the decision.

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Vice President Harris did not accidental successful a connection she released Sunday erstwhile she learned Biden was stepping aside, focusing alternatively connected praising Biden's leadership.

"On behalf of the American people, I convey Joe Biden for his bonzer enactment arsenic president of the United States and for his decades of work to our country," Harris said. "His singular bequest of accomplishment is unmatched successful modern American history, surpassing the bequest of galore presidents who person served 2 presumption successful office."

In a missive to the nation, Biden didn't elaborate connected what reasoning whitethorn person prompted his decision, saying lone "And portion it has been my volition to spot reelection, I judge it is successful the champion involvement of my enactment and the state for maine to basal down and to absorption solely connected fulfilling my duties arsenic President for the remainder of my term."

Biden's connection besides said helium would talk aboriginal this week to the federation astir his decision, which came came 24 days aft his disastrous June statement with erstwhile President Donald Trump.

Just 2 days anterior to Sunday's announcement, Biden sounded arsenic if helium had nary plans to retreat from the reelection race. In a connection Friday, the president said, "I look guardant to getting backmost connected the run way adjacent week to proceed exposing the menace of Donald Trump's Project 2025 docket portion making the lawsuit for my ain grounds and the imaginativeness that I person for America: 1 wherever we prevention our democracy, support our rights and freedoms, and make accidental for everyone."

Biden's youngest brother, Frank Biden, told ABC News that his brother's consequent determination to retreat was a "close call" reached lone aft respective Biden household members held respective discussions implicit the past week, led by archetypal woman Jill Biden, and that the household has ever been supportive of the president doing immoderate helium thought champion for the country.

"It truly boils down to this: it has to bash with his wide wellness and vitality. Not thing cognitive. But he's a arrogant guy, it pisses him disconnected that helium shuffles erstwhile helium walks," Frank Biden told ABC News.

Frank Biden besides said it has "been truly horrible [for the family] to spot the dogs fto escaped connected him," referring to longtime allies who successful caller weeks joined the calls for Biden to driblet retired of the race.

"Joe has 1 happening uppermost successful his mind. It's not him, not his ego, not his ambition. He has truly reached a spot wherever the lone happening that matters to him is the wellness of this nation," Frank Biden said.