President Joe Biden’s announcement to withdraw from the reelection race was both expected and surprising. Despite increasing pressure for the elderly president to bow out, he had persistently pledged to continue his campaign.
It’s been over half a century since an incumbent president opted not to pursue a second term. And with Biden’s official exit, the focus now shifts to the implications for the nation.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack stated that Biden will be remembered as one of the nation’s most significant presidents. Just hours after Biden announced his decision on Sunday, Vilsack released a statement praising him for his contributions.
Vilsack’s statement:
“In the 38 years that I have known President Biden, he has consistently and selflessly put our country first — and today is no exception. As a result, he will go down in history as one of our most consequential American presidents.
“He has led us out of the pandemic and revived our struggling economy to achieve record job growth, real wage increases, record-breaking new business creation, and a record stock market. He avoided an economic collapse and is still taming inflation while creating millions of jobs, without causing a crippling recession. His leadership has led to a strengthened and expanded NATO while also supporting Ukraine’s fight for democracy, and he forged alliances to push back against China’s assertions. Finally, he brought to fruition a vision of a new and dynamic American economy built around clean energy and climate-smart and resilient industries, including the agriculture sector. I am immensely proud to play a role in the Biden-Harris Administration, under which USDA has advanced food and nutrition security for tens of millions, invested in new, better and more markets to create a fairer and better marketplace for all farmers, improved the health and resilience of our national forests and grasslands, made our food safer, and centered equity in all that we do.
“This is an administration that embraces hope, optimism, and a forward-looking view for America — and our work is not done.”
Within minutes of announcing his withdrawal, Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor. Numerous Democrats quickly followed suit, supporting Harris in challenging Trump.
ActBlue, a Democratic fundraising organization, reported receiving $46.7 million in donations in the hours after Harris officially declared her candidacy. This was the largest single-day donation total for the organization this election cycle.
While many ag groups have not responded yet to Biden’s announcement, the United Farm Workers President Teresa Romero has endorsed Harris. UFW is based in Harris’ home state of California and is a labor union that focuses significantly on minority farm workers.
It released the following statement on Sunday:
“President Joseph R. Biden has been the greatest friend the United Farm Workers has had in the Oval Office. The Biden-Harris administration has worked tirelessly on behalf of farm workers, from championing state legislation to strengthen farm workers’ right to join a union, to ensuring undocumented essential workers were eligible for COVID vaccines and relief payments, to working to raise wages and increase legal protections in the exploitative H2A agricultural guest worker system, to proposing the nation’s first ever federal standards to protect farm workers from dying during extreme temperatures. President Biden deserves the gratitude and respect of all Americans for his lifelong service to our country and his fierce dedication to working people across America.
“Now, the United Farm Workers endorses Vice President Kamala Harris as the best leader to defeat Donald Trump and to continue the transformative work of the Biden-Harris administration.
“Since the very beginning of her career in California — the nation’s largest agricultural producer — Kamala Harris has proven herself a loyal friend of all working people. Dime con quien andas, y te digo quien eres. (Tell me who you are with, and I’ll tell you who you are.) Vice President Harris has stood with farm workers as California Attorney General, as a United States Senator, and as Vice President. The United Farm Workers could not be prouder to endorse her for President of the United States. Together, we continue the work of building an America that works for all of its working people. ¡Sí Se Puede!”
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