Joe Biden wanted to go down in history as the man who saved America from Donald Trump. Instead, he may be remembered for giving Trump a second term in the White House.
Years from now, the 82-year-old Biden may be judged more favorably. The Democrat led a divided country out of the Covid-19 pandemic and chaos of Trump's first four years, then pushed through an impressive number of laws.
For many, the defining image of the 46th president of the United States will be the frowning Biden, who lost his mind and his word during the disastrous debate against Trump that ultimately forced him to drop out of the race.
His replacement as the Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, faced the near-impossible task of preventing Trump's comeback.
If Biden insisted to the end that he could have defeated his Republican foe, he did concede that it might take some time to restore his reputation.
"It will take time to feel the full impact of everything we did together, but the seeds have been planted," he said in his farewell address.
Historical challenges
Biden's inauguration in January 2021 was a remarkable comeback for an often underestimated politician who has struggled all his life with both political difficulties and personal tragedy.
But he was an unlikely savior.
At the time, Biden was America's oldest elected president - until Trump's election in 2024 - and probably better known for his gaffes and for being Barack Obama's vice president.
And he faced historic challenges. The country was reeling from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters protesting his election defeat, and the U.S. economy had been wrecked by Covid.
But Biden quickly pushed through Congress a massive pandemic recovery scheme and a huge green investment plan as he sought to rebuild American industry and infrastructure.
He appointed the first black, South Asian citizen and woman as vice president.
Western allies welcomed his commitment to the alliances Trump had destroyed.
Perhaps Biden's proudest achievement was his support for Ukraine against Russian invasion in 2022 - and his top-secret trip to Kiev in 2023.
But Biden's popularity suffered an early blow with the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 - and never recovered. In the latest CNN poll, his approval rating was just 36%.
His pandemic stimulus caused inflation to soar, which is part of the reason Americans punished Harris in the election. His loose border policies have led to record numbers of illegal immigrants crossing the border, which Trump has cracked down on.
While claiming a late boost to his legacy with the Gaza ceasefire deal, he angered many with his unwavering support for Israel's war against Hamas despite the mounting death toll.
Despite all this, Biden believed he was the only man who could beat Trump again.
Fond of folk tales about his upbringing as a child with a stutter from an Irish Catholic background in Pennsylvania, he often quoted his father's mantra: "When you get knocked down, you get up."
In 1972, just days after his election to the Senate at age 29, he survived the tragedy of a car accident that killed his wife and young daughter, then rebuilt his life with the help of his second wife, First Lady Jill Biden.
Then followed the death of his older son Beau from brain cancer in 2015 and the drug and law problems of his younger son Hunter, whom he controversially pardoned.
But with age, it was a battle he couldn't win.
Trump called Biden "Sleepy Joe" and every stumble - on the steps of Air Force One, coming off a bicycle - was mercilessly replayed on social media.
Republicans' attacks - and Democrats' doubts - increased after Biden reneged on his promise to be a bridge to a new generation and announced in 2023 that he would seek re-election.
The White House insisted there was no problem, and increasingly shielded Biden from unscripted public appearances - until it was too late.
In his final days in office, Biden provided the smooth transition that Trump denied him. He invited Trump to the White House and the two rivals began an unprecedented collaboration on the Gaza deal.
Yet he also had a parting shot for Trump, warning in his farewell speech of the dangerous "oligarchy taking shape in America."
And if Biden's 50-year political career ended in disappointment, he also saw a bright side.
"Only in America do we believe that anything is possible, such as a child with a stutter from humble beginnings ... sitting behind that desk in the Oval Office as president," he said.
"That's the magic of America." | BGNES
.jpeg)
