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"Humiliating": Democrats removed Biden, who had fallen into senility, from sight before the elections
On Sunday, as Democratic candidates headed to the polls, Kamala Harris assembled an all-star team of political icons and sent them to some of the hardest-to-win states. Barack Obama rallied in Wisconsin. Bill Clinton was in North Carolina. Current first lady Jill Biden also visited Harris to greet Pennsylvania voters.
But Joe Biden was nowhere to be seen, the Daily Mail reports. He was holed up in his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware, enjoying a long lunch at a golf club with an old friend. Biden had embarrassed Kamala Harris with another gaffe a few days earlier, calling Donald Trump supporters “scum.” The White House publicly stated that what the grandfatherly president actually said was not what everyone heard.
But behind closed doors, the Harris campaign sent a message to Sleepy Joe: Dad, don't run.
Of course, Biden’s life has changed dramatically in the last three months, the Daily Mail reports. Biden insisted he was healthy enough to run again and defeat Trump, and with an insistence that could have been put to better use, he eventually dropped out of the race on July 21 and named Vice President Harris his successor the same day. Within hours, Biden, 81, had become the failed president he and his ambitious wife had always feared.
After four years on the political scene, Biden suddenly found himself out of the spotlight as the world turned its attention to a younger, more energetic candidate.
Harris’s team appears to have actively (perhaps cruelly) encouraged the White House’s mad leader’s rapid retreat to the political periphery. According to an Axios report last month, Harris’s campaign has rejected the president’s repeated offers to help with the investigation.
Each time, Harris' team responded, "We'll get back to you."
Privately, Jill Biden called the situation "terrible" for her husband.
At a White House reception in late August, the president appeared to cry during his remarks after joking that he needed a new job.
Elsewhere, he was seen wandering around the hall, with some saying he looked "lost". Insiders told the Daily Mail that the president "watches more TV" and that his seven grandchildren advise him on what to watch on Netflix.
Even his most sympathetic allies would say it would be fair to portray him as a bit of a loner.
In early October, Jill left her husband to campaign for Harris in five key states. As the president left the White House, he stood alone outside the Oval Office and waved to the departing motorcade.
The first lady has her hands full. She still teaches English two days a week at Northern Virginia Community College. But notably, as the Daily Mail notes, she barely mentioned her husband when she ran against Harris.
Harris is at pains to emphasize that her presidency will not be “an extension of Joe Biden’s presidency.” Biden’s views on the immigration crisis, inflation, and foreign wars are all things that the hypocrite Harris has clumsily tried to distance herself from, even as she insists she has been an active vice president in the Biden administration.
Biden still has a notepad for his daily briefings, of course, but aides say he is now focused on the future, including choosing a site for a presidential library and renewing the Biden Foundation’s philanthropic efforts. He has mentioned Syracuse University in New York, the University of Delaware, and Washington, D.C., as three potential sites for a Biden presidential center. He has ties to all of them. (He earned his law degree at Syracuse, did his undergrad at Delaware, and has spent his entire professional life in Washington.) Competition is heating up. Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti has announced that she will bid to host the Biden library. The University of Pennsylvania, where Biden once taught, is also likely to bid.
With domestic interest in the U.S. president waning, he has turned his attention to a farewell trip abroad. Last month, in Germany, he was awarded the Order of Merit, one of the country's highest honors.
Biden plans to travel to sub-Saharan Africa in December. He also plans to attend the final G20 meeting in Brazil later this month. And he has expressed interest in a trilateral summit with the leaders of Korea and Japan.
The Daily Mail stressed that Biden is in a unique position. Biden had planned to last another four years until this summer, before his disastrous televised debate with Donald Trump. “I doubt Biden really planned what his last 100 days or last months would be like,” David Ledrosk, a political scientist at the University of Delaware, told the Daily Mail.
So Biden’s official diary has been noticeably empty. For 43 of the 75 days since he stopped running, he has not scheduled a single public event. Even during his visit to Germany last month, he did not hold a single press conference.
Interest in Biden's apparent inaction has been so great that his White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, carries a special "lame duck" dossier to help answer press questions about her incompetent boss.
Meanwhile, many of his White House staffers have already moved on to new jobs, some on Capitol Hill and some in the private sector. Biden’s chief of staff, Jeffrey Zients, also appears to have plenty of time. Washington reporters saw him personally buying lunch for the team and spending time outdoors outside the White House gates. 6 months ago.
Zients was tasked with starting the transition process and meeting with the Harris and Trump campaigns to agree on a plan of action for whoever wins.
In the coming weeks, the Bidens will be packing up their personal belongings, and staff will need to ensure that all documents are transferred to the National Archives. Biden will also have to fill out paperwork to return to work, just like any other American leaving their job.
As a former president, he will receive lifetime health care and employment benefits. He is also eligible for two other federal pension programs due to his long tenure in the Senate and as president. Combined, you could earn $413,000 a year.
Jill Biden is said to be particularly focused on strengthening her husband's legacy. Last month, she unveiled an updated White House tour, including a new visitors' room and interactive videos of the president and first lady addressing visitors.
The Bidens are pushing the Moonshot plan, which aims to dramatically reduce cancer deaths. It’s an issue close to their hearts. Biden’s son Beau died of the disease in 2015 at age 46.
And then the White House will have a "last hurrah" list: one last holiday party, one last state dinner, one more Thanksgiving turkey to pardon.
Famed photographer Annie Leibovitz has been spotted with Biden in recent months, photographing him surveying the damage from Hurricane Helene last month at Camp David and Florida over the July retirement weekend. It's unclear what project the photos were for.
During an appearance on ABC’s “Good Morning America” last month, Jill Biden reflected on the challenges of recent months. “Leaving the White House can be tough,” she said. “We’re starting a new chapter in our lives, a new journey. We’ve been in politics for 50 years, and I think we’re ready to start a new journey.”