You Gave Your Best to Your Country, Joe, and All Democracy-Loving Americans Thank You for It.
Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam, August 20th, 2024.
Salaroche

If only Joe Biden's debate performance on June 27th had been as commanding as his Valedictorian last night. But, alas! It wasn’t. Last night he was presidential in his farewell. He really mustered the necessary, well-deserved, self-respect and the necessary love of country not to waver even for a minute in his dignified, natural, patriotic demeanor.

It must have been really painful for him to relinquish the possibility to serve a second term, but in the end he did what his love of country demanded that he did, pass the torch to Kamala. If it had only been up to himself, he would have stayed in the race, but the pressure for him to step down was too heavy, both from the general public and from influential members of his own party.

Personally, I was angry at him for staging such pathetic, even insulting performance during the debate. I couldn't bring myself even to imagine forgiving him for it and in my mind there was no way he could have recouped from it. Obviously, many other Americans felt equally disappointed in him, so, we all pushed him out of the race.

Some people even say it was a coup, which could also be a correct way to put it, but Joe knows much better than to resist the will of his own party and his moral stature is also much larger than to do that. As he himself said it last night, “I love this job, but I love my country more”, which was a true “near-Washingtonian” moment (recall that, when offered a possible 3rd term as President in 1799, George Washington declined it).

In so doing, Joe Biden also joined the small club of larger-than-life pro-Democracy statesmen like Nelson Mandela who in 1994, as the first-ever, freely-elected President of South Africa, announced that he intended to serve only one term. Great political power did NOT corrupt George’s, Joe’s, or Nelson’s moral core. Their principles just couldn’t allow them to embrace any power-thirsty, authority-hoarding ways.

And now put Joe Biden’s country-over-self attitude in contrast with the low, unprincipled, amoral, demented reluctance from the part of the Republican presidential nominee to even accept that he lost the 2020 elections.

Donald Trump, a convicted felon who for four years so soiled the moral standing of the office of the presidency, a guy who to this day continues to denigrate and insult the American Democratic and Judicial Systems, a corrupt, perverted guy who hardly ever has anything good to say about his own country.

But not you, Joe Biden. When it comes to patriotism you are a true American, the total opposite of that traitor. For 50 years you have given your best to your country and your moral and patriotic stature is now in clear display for the whole world to see.

Thank you Joe Biden for passing the torch to Kamala Harris. This country needs more leaders like you, and Kamala is certainly one of them. Thank you Joe.

Salaroche.