Jon Meacham Op-Ed: Joe Biden, My Friend and an American Hero

[demmiblue]

On the cliffs of Normandy, in a small holding area, the president of the United States was looking out at the English Channel. It was only six weeks ago, on the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings, and President Biden had just finished his remarks at the American cemetery atop Omaha Beach. Guests had been congratulating him on the speech, but he didn’t want to talk about himself. The moment was not about him; it was about the men who had fought and died there. “Today feels so large,” he told me. “This may sound strange — and I don’t mean it to — but when I was out there, I felt the honor of it, the sanctity of it. To speak for the American people, to speak over those graves, it’s a profound thing.” He turned from the view over the beaches and gestured back toward the war dead. “You want to do right by them, by the country.”

Mr. Biden has spent a lifetime trying to do right by the nation, and he did so in the most epic of ways when he chose to end his campaign for re-election. His decision is one of the most remarkable acts of leadership in our history, an act of self-sacrifice that places him in the company of George Washington, who also stepped away from the presidency. To put something ahead of one’s immediate desires — to give, rather than to try to take — is perhaps the most difficult thing for any human being to do. And Mr. Biden has done just that.

To be clear: Mr. Biden is my friend, and it has been a privilege to help him when I can. Not because I am a Democrat — I belong to neither party and have voted for both Democrats and Republicans — but because I believe him to be a defender of the Constitution and a public servant of honor and of grace at a time when extreme forces threaten the nation. I do not agree with everything he has done or wanted to do in terms of policy. But I know him to be a good man, a patriot and a president who has met challenges all too similar to those Abraham Lincoln faced.

Here is the story I believe history will tell of Joe Biden. With American democracy in an hour of maximum danger in Donald Trump’s presidency, Mr. Biden stepped in the breach. He staved off an authoritarian threat at home, rallied the world against autocrats abroad, laid the foundations for decades of prosperity, managed the end of a once-in-a-century pandemic, successfully legislated on vital issues of climate and infrastructure and has conducted a presidency worthy of the greatest of his predecessors. History and fate brought him to the pinnacle in a late season in his life, and in the end, he respected fate — and he respected the American people.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/22/opinion/joe-biden-american-hero.html

[Pachamama]

1. American Patriot and Fantastic President

[demmiblue]

2. * GIFT link to the article:

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/22/opinion/joe-biden-american-hero.html?unlocked_article_code=1.9E0.ukyp.nk89bySUjxwV&smid=em-share

[sop]

5. Great article. Thanks for the link.

Comments at the end are worth reading, too.

[wiggs]

11. Agree...often the NYT comments are better than the articles! nt

[Joinfortmill]

16. I keep saying it. Love Joe.

[Docreed2003]

3. K&R

[Elessar Zappa]

4. Great article.

Thank for posting this. A Joe Biden only comes around once in a lifetime. May he enjoy his long deserved retirement.

[sop]

6. Thirty-six years in the Senate, eight years as VP and a very successful four years as President.

As Joe would say, "That's a big fucking deal."

[democratsruletheday]

7. Amen 'sop'....

what a career and what a life!

[ProudMNDemocrat]

10. Those will be his words as he says fare thee well on Jan.20th at the innaugartion of Kamala 47.

"A Big fucking deal!"

God love ya, Joe!

[bahboo]

8. K & R to infinity....

still dealing with the emotional fallout of Joe's decision. A selfless decision by a great, great man. In a few days, I will be all in for Kamala Harris to make history as the first female president in our history.

[Mr.Bill]

9. Good article.

Maybe this is nitpicking, but it's President Joe Biden.

[MayReasonRule]

12. Biden, Roosevelt and Washington Are A Triumvirate Of American Reason

Here's to the reasoned patriots!

Here's to reason's rule!

[The Wizard]

13. He's not to old to be president,

nor is he too old to run for president. Doing both at once is really the work for a younger person. Nonetheless, History will record his achievements as extraordinary. Joe Biden is the embodiment of a dedicated public servant and patriot.

[sky_masterson]

14. I've got a straight man crush on Jon Meacham

I find him so fascinating. His historical observations are something I could listen to all day.

[llmart]

15. What a beautiful, heartfelt tribute.

We are very fortunate that he was elected and took on the monumental task of righting the ship of state after the catastrophe of the prior four years.

I do believe that he will be remembered with as much gratitude and fondness as Jimmy Carter gets.