President Joe Biden stepped into the Rose Garden Thursday to acknowledge Donald Trump’s victory over his Vice President Kamala Harris.
Biden has been here before. Eight years ago, he stood in the same spot next to outgoing President Barack Obama after the Democrats suffered a stinging defeat from Donald Trump. Then, Biden wore a red tie, an outward sign of civility toward Republicans. This time it was Biden’s turn to be the gracious loser. “In a democracy, the will of the people always prevails,” Biden said. He promised a “peaceful and orderly” transition from his Administration to Trump’s. “That’s what the American people deserve.”
As for Harris’ loss, Biden praised her for running an “inspiring” campaign and said the country got to see what he had learned early on about Harris, that she has “true character” and “a backbone like a ramrod.” Biden said “we accept the choice” the country made.
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Biden made a pointed rebuke to Trump’s unwillingness to accept his electoral loss in 2020. “You can’t love your country only when you win. You can’t love your neighbor only when you agree.” He implored his fellow Americans to “bring down the temperature.”
Biden has invited Trump to meet him in the White House, as Obama did, and promised, in the interest of the country, to open up federal agencies to Trump’s incoming team so they are prepared to take over when Trump is inaugurated on Jan. 20.
Biden’s openness is in stark contrast to Trump’s actions after Biden defeated him. Trump denied he lost, launched scores of unfounded legal challenges, pressured state election officials to find him votes, created slates of fake electors, and encouraged his supporters to storm the Capitol Building in a violent and failed attempt to overturn his loss on Jan. 6, 2021. During Trump’s manufactured turmoil, his Administration refused to allow Biden’s team to be briefed on the work of the federal agencies, including critical national security agencies like the Pentagon, the CIA, and the Homeland Security Department charged with keeping the country safe.
But for Biden, the contrast is the point. A major reason Biden launched his run for President in 2019 was to restore faith in the country’s democratic process that Trump had shattered. Biden ran on the promise that he would “restore the soul” of the country. Accepting the results of Trump’s win, encouraging Democrats to follow suit, and working in the interest of the country to help Trump start his second Presidency with the information and preparation Trump had denied him, is all part of Biden’s larger civic project.
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Biden wants to end the cycle of politicians undermining the integrity of elections when they lose. The country’s elections are secure and yield true results, Biden said. The electoral system is “honest and it is transparent and can be trusted, win or lose.” He made a point of thanking election workers, many of whom volunteered their time and faced threats as they went about the ordinary functions of counting votes.
Just as election workers did their duty as citizens, Biden said he would do his duty as President to ensure Trump can take office in January. “I’ll fulfill my oath and I’ll honor the Constitution and on January 20, we’ll have a peaceful transfer of power here in America.”
As he wrapped up his short remarks, Biden made a pitch to Trump’s Administration and Republicans in Congress to keep in place the investments he ushered through in the country’s infrastructure and the economy’s transition away from fossil fuels. Trump and Republicans have promised to zero out many of the investments Biden signed into law. A lot of the measures are “just kicking in,” Biden said, and Americans will start seeing new bridges and better broadband and other projects built over the next decade.
When Biden finished speaking, he stood and waved to his staff, family, and cabinet secretaries gathered on the Rose Garden lawn and then walked into the open door of the Oval Office. After he stepped inside, a Marine sentry closed the door behind him.
