I remember when I first told people I was throwing my support to Biden for President.

[Siwsan]

They rolled their eyes. Called him a 'has been'. They tried to 'talk sense' to me. When, at first, things didn't look good but I still held firm to my support, more eye rolls. When he got the nomination and I was ecstatic, they were accepting.

Slowly but surely, over the past year, they have all admitted I was right. And, even if there were still some lingering doubts, I strongly suspect today's speech will have erased them.

Yea, I'm feeling pretty chuffed, today. This is the President Biden I expected, and much, much more.

[Mme. Defarge]

1. Damn straight!

WE were right!!!

[MyOwnPeace]

5. Love the 'name.....'

and 'ya know, it just might be the 'right way' right now:

"Guillotine...guillotine......"

[Mme. Defarge]

7. Back in the day

I learned that didn’t work out so well. Mais, c’est la guerre.

[MyOwnPeace]

9. Mon tete, mon tete!!!!!!

[Walleye]

2. I joined DU when Biden announced. I know him pretty well as a Delawarean

I was absolutely confident that he was the person we needed at that time. I have only gotten more certain of it during his presidency. Today’s speech was one of the best I’ve ever heard him give

[wnylib]

34. I'd go further and say that it was THE best that he has given.

I doubt that it will persuade anyone from the "other side," but it sure as hell will rally the base. I believe that it will also inspire independents and people on the right who feel that Jan 6 was a bridge too far.

[Walleye]

36. I'll go along with you on that. It was a powerful speech and it was straight from the heart

[secondwind]

3. He was my first and only choice.... A good, decent man.....

[Butterflylady]

29. Heck he was my choice when Obama first ran. Although

Then I knew he wasn't gonna make it. However I was thrilled when he was chosen for VP.

He was my first and only choice in 2020. I knew he had it in him, people just to give him the chance to prove it. So glad they gave him that chance.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

4. I was Ridin' With Biden from the beginning as well.

He did me proud today.

Sleepy Joe? JOLTIN' Joe more like it.

I mean no disrespect to the Yankee great from San Francisco.

[LakeArenal]

6. I had a friend who still insists Joe is too old and doddery.

Wanted anyone but him in the primary.

Sour grapes as far as I’m concerned.

People hate admitting they are wrong.

Haters gonna hate.

Love ya Joe. Biden 2024.

[Torchlight]

8. I would have voted for anyone who won the primary

and would have warmly embraced almost all of them as president., but Biden was my go-to guy from day one. I'm glad he's the one in the chair today. The full, 50 years scope of his experience from the senate to the capitol has been critical in rebuilding the former administrations' numerous scorched earth policies and policy failures.

[Tetrachloride]

10. I made a mini spreadsheet so i could parse out the key factors

and total up the most likely to win. Some factors (addends) were negative for a few candidates.

Joe Biden was my estimated leader with 8 points.

Kamala Harris was first among the following pack.

[XanaDUer2]

11. I supported Joe with money

From the get-go. So proud I did

[LymphocyteLover]

12. He won me over after I heard his speech after winning South Carolina.

Plus just heard a lot of good stories about him.

[LiberalFighter]

13. He was the only right choice at the time regardless of any perceived faults.

The strengths he has outweighed any weaknesses.

[LymphocyteLover]

14. I remember at my county Dem meeting, getting asked to sign a petition to get his name on the ballot

(for Indiana). Joe wasn't my guy at that time but I signed it because the woman passing it around said Joe was our best bet for beating Trump. And I do believe she was right! And I ended up voting for him for the primary even though the race to be nominee was pretty much over at that point.

[TeamProg]

15. Any DEM would've been better than TFG! Biden is O.K.. I voted for Warren in the primary.

She's communicates EXTREMELY well.

She would've been great, too.

And I'm sure we'd be applauding any Dem at this point.

[USALiberal]

16. Who is "they"?? Nt

[Siwsan]

18. Friends/family

Kind of evenly split between Sanders and Warren supporters. Both of whom I thought would also make great Presidents but I really felt Biden's knowledge, experience and personality made him the perfect man for the job.

[Joinfortmill]

17. Me too. I knew he was made for the moment.

[Raster]

19. Every decent, sane person in the United States should give a prayer of thanks for Joe Biden.

... President Biden did not have to take this on. He could retired and spent the rest of his life comfortable with family and friends.

No, he did not ask for this, but I am DAMNED GLAD he stepped up!

Thank you, President Biden!!!

[greblach]

20. Joe! Great speech!

I could have supported most of the Democratic nominees, I was mostly an Elizabeth Warren fan, but Inslee, Bernie, Amy Klobuchar, Kamala Harris, etc all had some great ideas (and they are having a chance to enact some of them).

The main difference is that Joe had more chance to actually enact his agenda. While we all wish for more, his performance so far has been remarkable. It really is a testament to Georgia for voting for Joe and two Democratic Senators...Happy to be "riding with Biden"

[crimycarny]

21. I didn't want Biden at the very beginning either

I have always loved Joe Biden but I was worried he might lose. I know this is a stupid reason but part of me worried how it would affect Joe Biden if he lost yet again especially after having recently lost Beau so I didn't want him to take that chance. My first choice was Buttigieg.

However, I was happy to support Joe Biden when he won the primary and threw all my support his way. At the time who could have foreseen the pandemic, January 6th, the constant attempts by right-wing (and even "mainstream&quot media to attack him. Joe Biden is the PERFECT President for this time. After so much loss in his life, he can truly empathize with those who have lost so much in this pandemic. By the same token, he can ignore the criticisms and just get the job done because, after losing a beloved son, first wife, and daughter those petty criticisms mean nothing to Joe.

Joe Biden, more than anyone, knows what's important in life and is the right man to heal this country after so much pain.

[highplainsdem]

22. I wanted Biden from the beginning. I can recall getting a lot of grief for it, including from a

family member who was a Bernie supporter.

But Biden has justified my faith in him again and again. Especially today.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

23. I was a day one contributor to Biden and a Clinton Delegate to the National Convention

My kids were mad at me because they all supported Warren. I got to meet Joe in person at two fundraisers in 2019 before COVID. The parents of one of the good friends of my middle child was at one fundraiser and my middle child and her friend kept sending us texts complaining.

Joe is an amazing person. Joe signed three floor speech signs from his speech at the 2016 convention and I got to discuss stuttering with Joe.

[FailureToCommunicate]

24. I had Kamala Harris as my #1, Biden as 2nd choice. So I got what I hoped for.

As did America.

[IbogaProject]

25. He wasn't my first choce

He wasn't my first choice, but I've come to like his Presidency.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

26. I backed Biden from the beginning. Well, ...

... beginning after Klobuchar dropped out.

But then, go Biden!

[peggysue2]

27. There were a lot of people less than thrilled during the primaries

We had a big field and a lot of good people.

I supported Joe Biden from the start not bc I'd been a lifetime fangirl but because I thought he was the right candidate for this moment in history, an experienced statesman who knew where all the levels of power were, who appeared to instinctively understand the danger ahead and stated early on that it would be a 'battle for the soul of America.' Biden's natural compassion and empathy joined with his long-years of service seemed like the perfect antidote to Donald Trump and his ruinous, cruel administration.

I also believed Joe Biden could win.

He's proven me right at many turns but no more so than today with that extraordinary speech to the Nation, vowing he would not permit anyone, any faction to take a dagger to the throat of democracy.

This is the man I voted for and support without reservation. This is the leader I knew Joe Biden could be, an unapologetic patriot speaking for everyone who wants our democratic Republic to survive, thrive and succeed.

[FakeNoose]

28. Joe Biden was my first choice

On DU I didn't pick a candidate until Biden entered the race.

I recall that he was 3 or 4 months later announcing his intention to run. But that's neither here nor there. I believed he'd win the Democratic nomination. I always believed he was the candidate (possibly the only candidate) to beat Chump.

[calimary]

30. He wasn't my first choice. But when Jay Inslee pulled out, early-on, I went straight to Joe Biden.

I'd been an Inslee fan for awhile, and I still am. But he withdrew early. I decided the best and most realistic bet of all the other contenders was Joe Biden. Never wavered after that.

And I've found it helps not only to think of their actual records on whatever job it was, but also to think in terms of who's-most-likely-to-pull-a-rabbit-outta-the-hat. Game it out. Who's best at PR, shaping the narrative, coming up with a good catch-phrase, how could you sell it/how cleverly and memorably could you sell it, and does it have "legs"? Can it be extrapolated into other angles surrounding and feeding into the mission and keeping the basic messaging fresh and alive and evolving and still reflecting the current moment. And who've they got as advisors - past winners? Or losers?

[Siwsan]

31. I knew Joe could hit the ground, running. No real learning curve needed

He had the contacts. He had the knowledge. He had the respect, both domestic and foreign. And he's a good, good man who would put country first. All in all, the polar opposite of tfg.

[calimary]

35. Yep. He presented loads of experience - seriously relevant experience. AND temperament.

I REALLY liked his temperament.

I think the biggest impression he made on me was the way he behaved as Vice President.

He's a guy who came in with President Obama, in 2008, and actively took a second-in-line step. Immediately stepped into it and embraced it. NO behavior of subtly showing off his many more years in the Senate than Barack Obama had, or his having his own (unsuccessful) presidential races under his belt already, or any other "strut your seniority" stuff. He willingly took on the Number-Two position, with Number-Two-level power, clout, and authority. No showboating or spotlight-hogging or attention-whoring. He stepped up, enthusiastically to help He-Who-Was-Number-One, with no attitude except for "how can I help?"

Gotta say, I noticed that big time. That repeatedly hit me like so many pies in the face. That told me OOOOODLES about him as a person. As a human being. As a compassionate public servant. As a man whose repeated utterance show he thinks "US" before "ME".

[monkeyman1]

32. TFG is busy figuring out who to buddy with in jail ???

[Lunabell]

33. This Bernie supporter approves this message.

After Biden won the nomination, I threw my support behind him 100%. As a matter of fact, I didn't EVER criticize him before the primary like I did with Hillary Clinton. (mostly about her vote on defense of marriage act) When she won, I got behind her too.

But, this election I was scared. Scared to death for another 4 years of a madman. It never occurred to me in '16 that Hillary could lose or I never would have criticized her either.

But I really LIKE Biden. He is a decent man with integrity, compassion and empathy. And of course, smarts. He is really trying to do right by the middle class and working class. He knows that this is a much stronger country when the average person is successful.

Just my 2 cents.

[mzmolly]

37. Biden supporter

here also. I'm so grateful for his leadership and calm strength.