U.S. President Joe Biden announced on Sunday that he will no longer pursue re-election in November, opening the door for a different politician to challenge Republican nominee Donald Trump.
A handful of NBA figures have reacted to the news on social media.
Father time is undefeated
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) July 21, 2024
So why did democrats want biden out?
— kuz (@kylekuzma) July 21, 2024
I love when Teams play a WE game.
It always beats a Team who plays a self interested ME game. 💪
Thank you President Biden. 🇺🇸
— George Karl (@CoachKarl22) July 21, 2024
— George Karl (@CoachKarl22) July 21, 2024
Biden broke the news in a statement.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President,” part of the statement read. “And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term.”
Shortly after, he endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his pick to be the Democratic nominee in the upcoming election.
“My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” he wrote. “My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”
Biden’s decision to drop out of the race comes after concerns had heightened about his age and ability to serve another four years. Biden is 81 years old, and Trump is 78. If Harris, 59, becomes the Democratic nominee, she will provide voters with a much younger voting option.
A poor debate showing from Biden against Trump last month seemingly sparked a bit of a domino effect that led to more Americans questioning the viability of a second Biden term. Now, less than a month later, he’s out of the race.
Trump, who served as the 45th president of the United States, is looking to get back into office after losing to Biden in the 2020 election. While many Americans had expressed concerns about the idea of a second Biden term, the same has been the case for Trump, one of the most controversial presidents in the nation’s history.
Voting day is set for Nov. 5, giving Harris a very limited amount of time to put together a campaign for presidency. Given Biden’s endorsement, she certainly seems like the favorite to become the Democratic nominee and face off against Trump. Harris, with a successful election bid, would become the first woman to be president in U.S. history.
The NBA world is clearly keeping its eyes on the major news, and it’s safe to assume that there will be plenty more developments in the coming days and weeks.
