There's No Hiding Jill's Effortless Response To Joe's Dropout
Imagine you're the first lady. Your husband just announced he's ending his campaign for re-election. What do you say? If you're Jill Biden . . . not much.
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00:00Imagine you're the first lady. Your husband just announced he's ending his campaign for
00:04re-election. What do you say? If you're Joe Biden, not much.
00:08After weeks of pressure from members of his own party, President Joe Biden announced on
00:12July 21, 2024, that he would discontinue his bid for another term in office. Moments later,
00:18he confirmed that he's endorsing his vice president, Kamala Harris, to be the Democratic
00:22nominee.
00:23Harris responded by thanking the president for his years of public service, adding,
00:26"'I am honored to have the president's endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination.'"
00:31But Joe's wife, Dr. Jill Biden, didn't say anything at all — at least, not in words.
00:36She reposted her husband's letter announcing he was stepping down from the campaign, with
00:40her only commentary being an emoji of two red hearts.
00:43Jill also retweeted Joe's post endorsing Harris, but it was a direct retweet with no added
00:48comment at all. The comments on Jill's ex-post with the hearts were the predictable mix of
00:52supporters expressing gratitude for Joe's life of service, sadness to hear that he was
00:56dropping out, and a rise of remarks from people on the opposing side.
00:59There are some signs the first lady is taking some time to let the news of President Biden
01:03dropping out of the race set in. As of the making of this video, the header on her ex-home
01:07page still has the phrase, "'Let's finish the job' in it. That was a rallying cry for
01:11the president's campaign.
01:12"'So let's finish the job.'"
01:14Joe has already updated his ex-home page. The header there now reads,
01:17"'Harris for President.' Other members of the Biden family have said more on social
01:21media than their matriarch. For instance, Naomi Biden, Joe's granddaughter and Jill's
01:25step-granddaughter, posted on ex,
01:27"'I'm nothing but proud today of my pop, our president, Joe Biden, who has served our country
01:31with every bit of his soul and with unmatched distinction.'"
01:34She also posted a picture of a statement from her father, Hunter Biden, which read in part,
01:38"'For my entire life, I've looked at my dad in awe. How could he suffer so much heartache
01:42and yet give so much of whatever remained of his heart to others? Thank you, Mr. President.
01:47I love you, Dad.'"
01:48It could be that Jill is waiting to say something more substantive until the president addresses
01:52the nation directly, as he has said he will, to give more context for his bombshell announcement.
01:57But we don't really know when, or if, Jill will be giving any further comment on her
02:00husband's choice. According to numerous reports, Jill was an important sounding board for Joe
02:05as he contemplated whether to step out of the presidential race.
02:08The decision came while Joe was at home in Delaware, recovering from COVID. His wife
02:12and a few other close advisors were reportedly there with him as he worked through his decision.
02:17"...President Biden isolating at home in Rehoboth, Delaware. First Lady Jill Biden
02:21there too. The decision, his alone to make."
02:24The Wall Street Journal reported that Elizabeth Alexander, the first lady's communications
02:28director, explained that Jill was there for her husband, saying,
02:31"...down to the last hours of the decision only he could make, she was supportive of
02:35whatever road he chose. It's a role she has played for many years."
02:39Jill has been one of Joe's most steadfast confidants, and she had been a vocal advocate
02:43of her husband's presidential campaign, a contrast to Melania Trump's lack of involvement
02:47in Donald Trump's campaign. Even after Joe's disastrous debate performance against Trump
02:51in late June, she was publicly backing her husband's re-election bid even as others began
02:56calling for him to drop out.
02:57Jill is in a unique position. The only other first lady in the last century or so to face
03:02such a situation was Lady Bird Johnson, wife of former President Lyndon B. Johnson. Like
03:06Jill, Lady Bird was close with her husband, and her opinion meant a great deal to him.
03:11Johnson announced he wasn't going to be running for a second term in a televised address in
03:141968. Time notes that Lady Bird is said to have referred to it as his best speech, nobly
03:19done.
03:20That's a bit more eloquent than some hearts on a social media post, but it may be similar
03:24to how Jill feels about Joe's announcement.