Kamala’s campaign is reliant on Biden.
Weissert ‘7/24 [Will, Kim Seung, and Zeke Miller; July 24; Will is a national political reporter based in Washington; Kim is an American journalist who is a White House correspondent for the Associated Press; Zeke is AP's chief White House correspondent; WHYY, "Biden makes a case for his legacy — and for Harris to continue it — in Oval Office address," https://whyy.org/articles/joe-biden-address-oval-office-election-harris/]//av
The president sought to use the address to outline the stakes in the election, which both Biden and Harris have framed as a choice between freedom and chaos, but he tried to steer clear of overt campaigning from his official office.
“The great thing about America is here, kings and dictators do not rule,” Biden said. “The people do. History is in your hands. The power is in your hands. The idea of America — lies in your hands.”
Biden was also making the case for his legacy of sweeping domestic legislation and the renewal of alliances abroad. But the way history will remember his time in office and his historic decision to step aside is intertwined with Harris’ electoral result in November, particularly as the vice president runs tightly on the achievements of the Biden administration.
His advisers say he intends to hold campaign events and fundraisers benefiting Harris, whom Biden praised as “tough” and “capable,” albeit at a far slower pace than if he had remained on the ballot himself.
Harris advisers will ultimately have to decide how to deploy the president, whose popularity sagged as voters in both parties questioned his fitness for office.
Biden, aides say, knows that if Harris loses, he’ll be criticized for staying in the race too long and not giving her or another Democrat time to effectively mount a campaign against Trump. If she wins, she’ll ensure his policy victories are secured and expanded, and he’ll be remembered for a Washingtonian decision to step aside for the next generation of leadership.
Biden said he’s grateful to have served as president — nowhere else would a kid with a stutter grow up to sit in the Oval Office.
“I’ve given my heart and my soul to our nation,” he said. “I’ve been blessed a million times in return.”