before we hand things over to lawrence, i do want to remind you out there about an upcoming in real life event msnbc live democracy 2024. it is set for saturday, september 7th in the borough of brooklyn for tickets you can scan the qr code or go to msnbc.com/democracy 2024. i will be there, joy will be there, jen, simone, and rachel will be there. lawrence will be there, chris hayes is going to serve his famous pig in a blanket. i'm laying, but i think he is going to be there. democracy 2024 will be lit, it will be brat and all the other amenable things. you're going to get coconut pilled coming up. that does it for all of us at the table tonight and our coverage of president biden's historical office speech continues now with the last word with my great friend, lawrence o'donnell. good evening, lawrence. >> hey, alex. president biden's first white hair -- white hoss white house

chair. who was in the room in the oval office with the president when he delivered that speech tonight. >> no two better people to talk to. we will all be watching. >> thank you, alex. >> have a great show. >> and so joe biden has run his last campaign. there were 12 of them. 12 biden campaigns beginning in 1972 and ending this week of 2024. 52 years. of campaigning. there is no other record like that in american political history. joe biden won six consecutive elections to the united states senate, serving 36 years. he then won two vice presidential election. he ran for president four times with one. and in his fourth run for president, he withdrew from

the race and gave his support to vice president kamala harris. joe biden's quest for the presidency began in his third term as a united states senator when he was 45 years old. in 1988. >> today i announce my candidacy for president of the united states of america. [ applause ] >> that first biden presidential campaign ended when the votes were counted at the iowa caucus. >> i have been here long enough to know that when the tide starts to roll, and things start to move, when things like this begin to happen it requires all of one's time, energy, and concentration to put it back on track. at the same time, all of my energy and skill are required

to deal with president reagan's effort to reshape the supreme court in a way that i truly believe would be harmful for this country. and therefore, it seems to me i have a choice. i have to choose between running for president and doing my job to keep the supreme court from moving in a direction i believe to be truly harmful. there will be other opportunities for me to campaign for president. but there will not be many other opportunities for me to influence president reagan's choice of the supreme court. although it is awfully clear to me what choice i have to make, i have to tell you honestly, i do it with incredible reluctance. i have included that i will stop being a candidate for president of the united states. >> joe biden knew that sometime he would be back on the presidential campaign trail.

and 20 years later, he let tim russert break the news. >> are you running for president? >> i am running for president. before the month is out. this month. >> you will take on hillary clinton, barack obama? >> i'm going to be joe biden and i'm going to try to be the best biden i can be. i've got a shot, if i can't, i lose. >> if i can't, i lose. once again, the biden presidential campaign ended the night of the iowa caucus. in this time, after a stunning world changing victory by the newest face in the race, barack obama. >> so many of you sacrificed for me. i feel so indebted to you but you know, folks. jill and i. come on up here, jill. jill and i -- [ applause ] jill and i decided, we decided to do

this. we decided to do this, we decided to do this. you know, the reason to do this, the reason to do this, the reason to make the effort that you made is because we really, really, really do believe in this country. we really do. i believe to the bottom of my being, in the unlimited potential of the american people. i congratulate them all. i congratulate barack on such a terrific and win. he deserves great credit. and let me tell you something. a lot of people said it is a great night to be a democrat. and it is also a great night to be me. it is a great night to be me. because you have invested your faith. you know, i am always quoting those irish poets. but it is true. it is true and i will end this campaign the way it began. history teaches us not to hope on this side of the grace

period but then once in a lifetime, now, that long far time away from justice rises up and hope and history rhyme. my prayer for you is, my plea to you is make sure it does. make sure it does. because we have the capacity, we have the capacity to make hope and history rhyme and you have given me great hope and great pride. thank you very much. thank you very much! [ applause ] >> joe biden was one of the now countless presidential candidates whose presidential campaign ended on the night of the iowa caucuses. tonight he became the first presidential candidate in history to give a withdrawal speech from a campaign that he won. the campaign for the democratic nomination for president. joe biden stands alone on that point in history. other presidents could have sought re-election and chose

not to. made that decision before winning enough delegates for the presidential nomination. in 1948, president harry truman decided not to run for re- election and never campaign for re-election .20 years later, lyndon johnson decided not to run for re-election and never campaign for re-election. george washington established the tradition of presidents serving only two terms. when he chose not to seek a third term. but george washington never said that presidents should serve only two terms and never believed that. george washington's later explanations in private letters about not seeking a third term included his belief that politics had become too nasty during his second term for him to seek a third term. and he believed that he operably couldn't win a third term. yes, george washington believed that. and george washington's long written farewell address, he

revealed that four years earlier, he began writing a farewell address at the end of his first term. but he changed his mind and offered himself as a candidate for re-election to a second term only, he says, because of what he called the then perplexed and critical posture of our affairs with foreign nations. it turns out, george washington and joe biden shared that same reason for running for a second term. obviously the single most important policy reason joe biden thought he should continue in the presidency at a second term is what washington called the perplexed and critical posture of our affairs with foreign nations. ukraine, russia, israel, gaza, china. joe biden is the best

foreign-policy president we have had since franklin delano roosevelt led this country to a victory in world war ii. two weeks ago, president joe biden the best televise presidential press conference on foreign policy in history. he handled serious questions about the most complex part of the president's job. what washington called the perplexed and critical posture of our affairs with foreign nations. no president has ever answered such questions with more careful and precise clarity. that didn't satisfy the critics. wanted joe biden to end his presidential campaign. and so the president, who managed the nato alliance in support of ukraine with incomparable mastery went to work managing and importantly transition in a political environment on the verge of

chaos and on sunday, first with the announcement on social media that he would stop campaigning for president and second, with the announcement on social media of his endorsement of kamala harris, joe biden managed, the most masterful transition of a presidential campaign from the biden-harris campaign to the harris campaign. a transition with the likes of which has never occurred before in history. a transition so fully and overwhelmingly successful that vice presidents kamala harris had enough delegates votes pledged for the presidential nomination 34 hours later. and tonight, at 8:01 p.m., the president of the united states said this. >> my fellow americans, i am speaking to you tonight from behind the presidential desk in the oval office.

in this sacred space, i'm surrounded by portraits of extraordinary american presidents. thomas jefferson, wrote the immortal words that guided this nation. george washington, who showed us presidents are not kings. abraham lincoln, who implored us to reject malice. franklin roosevelt, who inspired us to reject fear. i revere this office. i love my country more. it has been the honor of my life to serve as your president. but in the defense of democracy, which is at stake, it is more important that i draw strength and i find joy working for the american people. but this sacred task of perfecting our union is not about me, it is about you. your families. your futures. it is about we, the people. we can never forget that.

and i never have. >> the president had some questions for the american people. >> we have to decide, do we still believe in honesty? decency? respect? freedom, justice, and democracy. in this moment, we can see those we disagree with not as enemies but as fellow americans . can we do that? does character and public life still matter? >> president biden made it very clear that those questions will be on the presidential election ballot this year. a vote for kamala harris means that a voter still believes in justice and democracy and the character in public life. still matters. the macula, in recent weeks it has become clear to me that i need to unite my party in this critical endeavor. i believe that as president, my leadership in the world, my

vision for america's future, will merit a second term. but nothing, nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy. that includes personal ambition. so i have decided the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation. that is the best way to unite our nation. and though there is a time and a place for long years of experience in public life, there is also a time in a place for new voices. fresh voices. yes, younger voices. and that time and place is now. my fellow americans, it has been the privilege of my life to serve this nation for over 50 years. nowhere else on earth could a kid with a stutter from scranton, pennsylvania, clermont , delaware, one day sit behind the resolute desk in the oval office as president of the united states.

here i am. that is what is so special about america. we are a nation of promise and possibilities. of dreamers and doers. ordinary americans doing extraordinary things. i give my heart and my soul to our nation. >> joining us now by phone is white house press secretary, karine jean-pierre who is in the oval office during the president's speech tonight. karine, thank you very much for joining us tonight. >> lawrence, thank you so much for having me. thank you. >> to be in the oval office is always an honor. it always feels historic to us who have been there so few times to you, i don't know if you have gotten used to it yet. but for me, when i was working in washington, it always felt like i was walking into history no matter what it was. but tonight, karine point tonight you were in that room for a moment that is going to

be in history books for hundreds of years. the moment that is going to be read about. you were in the room for that. what did it feel like? what was your personal experience in that room, including with everything you have personally been through at the white house leading up to this hour tonight? >> will, lord, thank you so much for this opportunity. and you are correct, it is always an honor and i am always in awe every time i walk into the west wing lobby. every time i am in my office in the west wing. it is always, it is a privilege, it is an honor. it is never lost on me how historic it is just to be the white house press secretary, just to be speaking on behalf of the president of the united states. tonight what the country witnessed, what i witnessed, we all witnessed was historic. it is historic. we are talking about a man, as he has always done, put country first, right? joe biden, as the world saw

tonight, understands the job he holds and the office is bigger than one man. bigger than one person. and to quote, if you don't mind, i would love to share, i know, i was watching the opening of your show. he said the great thing about america is here. kings and dictators do not rule. people do. history is in your hands. the power is in your hands. the idea of america lies in your hands. this is a president who understands, as you said tonight, the defense of democracy is more important than any title. and what we saw this weekend, this past sunday, a selfless act. very few politicians would do whatever pick ever do. i can't even name a politician who would do that. so it was incredibly powerful speech. he was surrounded by his family and his top aides.

as you just mentioned in the intro, it was a moment i will never, ever forget. and i could not be more prouder to have worked for this man and i want to be crystal clear here. president biden will go down in history as one of the greatest presidents, period, full stop. >> were there tears in that room asked the president spoke? >> it was emotional. it was emotional. we all, i don't think anyone after that, those remarks didn't feel the emotion. of someone who had served his country 50+ years as he said in his statement. had given his heart and soul, you felt it in the room. even more so, you felt his heart and soul. you felt what this country means to him. and it was a beautiful moment. an emotional moment. but a historic moment.

and, you know, at the end, we applauded him. he got love from us in the room. he got love from his team afterwards. he was able to go to the room, hundreds of us, of the staff gathered together. the rain held off just a little bit and he was able to show his appreciation to the team that had stood with him, the staff who has been with him through the 3 1/2 years, four years and stood there and we applauded him and we cheered him on and he thanked us for the work that we have been able to do and the accomplishments, the historical college means that we have been able to get. and you just saw people i phones and smart phones up and taking pictures. and it was a moment that we all needed. we could not be prouder of his leadership, we could not be prouder of what he has done, not just on sunday but certainly the last four years.

it was a special moment. it was a special moment, lawrence. >> karine, when did you find out that sunday was going to be a busy day for you? >> [ laughter ] so basically what happened is the president, on saturday evening, gathered with a small group of his advisers and his family and he started to think through the next steps and sunday, the next day, sunday afternoon, he made his decision and he called the vice president and then he got on the phone with his to his top aides and he told us at 1:45 that he had made this decision and while we were on the phone, the letter was released and the rest of the world slowed down. and that is how we found out. it is not an easy decision. it is a selfless decision.

it is a hard decision and he put country first and that is what we saw. and you heard him talk about passing the torch. passing the torch. i think that was a big theme of his oval address. one thing i will say, lawrence, is that the last four years, the four years prior to this administration, you had a former president that stoked fear. that is what you had. and the last four years of this administration you had president biden that stoked healing and the importance of healing. and no other president , no other person would have been able to do what he has been able to do. is try and bring the country together and give it some healing. that was so needed. >> karine, we all watched you on the first white house press briefing that you had to conduct after the debate and how contentious it became in the room with the white house press corps obviously, a very,

very difficult period for you. i can't think of a more difficult challenge than a white house press secretary has ever faced in the white house. as you moved through it and got to this past weekend, what was it like for you personally in that moment when you understood the president had made this decision to stop campaigning what did you personally feel at that moment? when you got that? >> you know, emotional, obviously. but pride, a lot of pride. because it was certainly a moment where, again, i realized who i am working for. someone who is a great man. someone who understands what it means to be selfless. someone who understands. i mean, when you take these jobs. and you are a public servant, lawrence. you know how it is. for me, when i take a job like this, you believe in the person

that you are working for, right? believe in the platform. believe you're going to make change. believe we are going to make people's lives better. and that is why i took this job. that is why i took this job. and we have been able to show that over and over and over by really putting an unprecedented record. so when i heard the news on sunday morning, i heard him talking to all of us on that call i thought to myself, yeah, this is the man that i signed up for. this is it. this is the man that i signed up to work for. right? this is what, you give up a lot of your life to be a public servant and to do everything that you can on behalf of the president that you work for and also on behalf of the american people. and so i felt emotional, but a lot of pride in the work that we have done and the person that i know to be our leader, right? our great leadership certainly

is something that we trust. it was a hard day for many of us. doesn't matter how you found out. you had a difficult day. but now, we are in a place where , as the president said, there is a lot at stake here. our democracy is at stake. our freedom is at stake. and we have to do everything that we can to protect that. and that is why the president ran in 2020, the last 3 1/2 years. and now he is passing the torch and wants to make sure that that continues. >> white house press secretary, karine jean-pierre, i cannot thank you enough for joining us on this historic night and i know i speak for the audience and their gratitude hearing from you tonight. thank you very much. >> thank you, lord. thank you, lawrence, i appreciate you so much, lawrence. thank you, thank you. >> thank you very much. former white house chief of staff to president biden, ron klain, who was at president biden's side for decades

beginning during joe biden's time in the united states senate will join us after this break.

a

the moment i met him i knew he was my soulmate. "soulmates." soulmate! [giggles] why do you need me? [laughs sarcastically] but then we switched to t-mobile 5g home internet. and now his attention is spent elsewhere. but i'm thinking of her the whole time. that's so much worse. why is that thing in bed with you? this is where it gets the best signal from the cell tower! i've tried everywhere else in the house! there's always a new excuse. well if we got xfinity you wouldn't have to mess around with the connection.

therapy's tough, huh? -mmm. it's like a lot about me. [laughs] a home router should never be a home wrecker. oo this is a good book title. like so many others, i have been blessed 1 million times and return with the love and support of the american people. i hope you have some idea of how grateful i am to all of you. the great thing about america is here, kings and dictators do not rule. the people do. history is in your hands. the power is in your hands. the idea of america lies in your hands. you just have to keep faith, keep the faith. remember who we are. we are the united states of america, and there is simply nothing, nothing beyond our capacity when we do it together. so let's act together, preserve our democracy.

god bless you all, and may god protect our troops. thank you. >> joining our discussion now, joe biden's first white house chief of staff through president biden, ron klain. thank you very much for joining us on this important night. ron, please indulge me for a second because it turns out i had a senior moment in the earlier discussion. i think that i said that harry truman didn't run for re- election in 1948. of course, he did. he didn't run in 1952. that was option he had to run and didn't run then. so i just needed to get that straightened up. we are all capable of those moments, turns out, at any age. ron, you have been. tell us, when did you start with joe biden? >> in 1986, lawrence. started in 1986, worked on his 19 88 residential campaign and left his staff, came back again in 1989 for three years and rejoined him when he came vice

president. >> what has it been like for you, ron, since sunday to hear? knowing that this speech was coming tonight. all of us had a reaction on sunday. a lot of us have talked about our reactions on sunday. when did you know that the president was going to stop campaigning and how did it feel for you? >> look, i think as the president said tonight, i think his record, his leadership on the world stage, his agenda for the next term justified him running for president again and staying in the race. but i think he came to realize that our party was divided on the question and that the password was going to be a path of grinding it out for the convention and grading out for the fall. instead he chose a different path with so much at stake, not just leave the race but to explicitly endorse vice president harris and to put the more qualified candidate forward to succeed him. a woman who has served in the

administration for four years, who the only other person other than joe biden who is taken the presidential daily brief every day for the past 3 1/2 years. represented the united states and the world stage, past landmark legislation in the past. he handed the baton to the best qualified person to be the next president of the united states and launched a campaign where, as he said in 2008, hope and history can rhyme. i think that poetic campaign he has launched with the endorsement of vice president harris, great results already. i think people see that she will be a great candidate and i can tell you she will be a great president. >> ron, how is the president doing? >> he is doing very well, i have talked to him a couple times since his decision and he is very excited about vice president harris's campaign i think he didn't expect it to work out this way but has embraced it fully and is thinking hard about what he can do to help her win and about what he can do in the next x months to be a good president and he is going to be announcing some plans on supreme court reform next week.

he is going to press for the tape here. going to continue to lead the world democracy and the defense of freedom in ukraine and countering russian aggression. going to try to solve this war in the middle east and ended on his watch and continue to lead the united states in the world. and do whatever he can to help vice president harris defend democracy in the 2024 election. >> let's listen to what the president said tonight about what he is intending to do for the next six months. >> for the next six months, i will be focused on doing my job as president. that means i will continue to work hard for hard-working families. grow our economy. i will keep defending our personal freedoms and our civil rights, from the right to vote to the right to choose. i will keep on calling out hate and extremism. making clear there is no place in america for political violence, for any violence ever, period. i'm going to keep speaking out

to protect our kids from gun violence. our planet from climate crisis, and x essential threat to i will keep fighting for my cancer moonshot, so we can end cancer as we know it, because we can do it. i am going for supreme court reform because this is critical to our democracy. >> ron, there is no senator, there is no one who has one elective office in our history who has cared more and worked harder for the kind of supreme court that we all want and that he believes the united states deserves and i was so struck, i went back today to look at his 1988 withdrawal speech. the speech withdrawing from the campaign, from the presidential campaign, to say he was going back to work with the senate judiciary committee where you served with him. the senate judiciary committee because he was concerned about where president reagan was

taking the supreme court. >> look, i think it was a similar moment in 1987 where he had to decide between pursuing his campaign or running the judiciary committee. when facing the nomination of robert bork to the supreme court. joe biden hadn't focused on the judiciary committee, hadn't defeated the bork nomination and secure the nomination of anthony kennedy, the woman's right to choose would've been lost decades ago because justice kennedy wrote that opinion for the supreme court. so our history, for the past couple of decades, at the court, has been remarkably changed by biden's leadership and defeating the bork nomination and securing kennedy's confirmation to the supreme court. so this is an issue that he has always put ahead of his own personal ambitions. he did that back in 1987. he is talking about that again tonight. i thought his speech tonight was not only a speech out of the annals of history of presidential leadership. i think it defines what citizenship means in america, putting country before yourself. service before ambition. and putting hope before hate.

and i thought the values, the civic values continued in the president's speech tonight our model for all american citizens in this country. >> ron, please stay with us across this commercial break because i want to ask you about the staff, the white house staff and the kit campaign staff because i think in a certain way they represent a lot of the audience who are watching this and millions of people who are watching this tonight because i spoke to a young white house staffer this weekend who i just happened to run into at a dinner table of about 10 people. she was one of them, in her 20s and she was very confused and hurt by what was happening and what had happened to the president at that point. this was actually sunday night and she was kind of hurt and i sensed some anger and confusion about it all. i want you to guide us through those feelings after this break. we will be back with us right after the break. k.

our local newd when others won't, but it's under siege from big out-of-state media companies and hedge funds.

now, california legislators are considering a bill that could make things even worse by subsidizing national and global media corporations while reducing the web traffic local papers rely on. so tell lawmakers, support local journalism, not well connected media companies. oppose ab 886. paid for by ccia. hello, hello, hello. [ applause ] my name is joe biden. >> still with us, ron klain. i spoke to one of those white house staffers who was in that room there tonight, a young white house staffer over the course of the weekend who was very, i think, confused and hurt by what she saw happen joe

biden over the last three weeks . how should those staffers be processing what they have been through? >> look, i do think it has been a painful few weeks and i understand the team's frustration and sadness. look at the president's record, he passed the largest economic recovery plan since fdr pick the biggest infrastructure bill since eisenhower. got more judges since jfk. past the biggest gun control bill since clinton and the biggest climate change plan of any country in the world ever in history. while meeting managing the worst public health crisis and largest land war in europe since truman was president and a democratic president in 100 years. with that kind of record you would think there would be more support for the president going forward. but i think the president made his decision, made an important decision not just to leave the

race by to explicitly set the course forward to say hey, there is one person who is super qualified to be our next nominee and to be our next president. she has been a partner in all the progress we have made. she brought judgment to the oval office everyday. she has been involved in key decisions. represented the united states on the world stage. she understands that the security threats the country faces, served on the intelligence committee, understands the domestic threats the country faces as a former prosecutor, as a member of the judiciary committee. given her sense of experience on capitol hill and in the white house and in the state government, there's no person that are qualified to be the next president and kamala harris. i think the thing that is important wasn't just a decision to leave the race but to put the race in one person's hands, the best qualified to lead our party and save our democracy in this election. so understand that, a decision filled with intentionality by the president to pointing a path forward. obviously is painful in many respects but i think the enthusiasm you see, the deserved enthusiasm for her

candidacy, for her historic candidacy i think energized everyone. it energized me just to move forward, see what we can do to try to make sure that his last wish as president, to see that she succeed him be achieved and that the incredibly talented team that he has assembled in wilmington and the resources assembled there but together to get vice president elected as president of the united states. >> first put out a handwritten note tonight saying to those who never wavered, to those who refused to doubt, to those who always believed, my heart is full of gratitude. thank you for the trust you have put in joe. now it is time to put that trust in kamala. love, joe. so she addresses it to those who never wavered how does the first lady and how is the president feeling about those who did waiver? friends of theirs waiver? >> the president and first lady have a big heart and i think

that they always look forward, not back. and they are now all in on getting vice president harris elected and mentioned several times, that united party, pulling every one together to make sure that she is our nominee and make sure that she wins in the fall. i think that they are singularly focused on that and not on any kind of score or anything like that that is not who joe biden is. he is a generous person. you know, he works closely with political foes and political allies. and during his presidency, people who were trying to defeat his presidency altogether and brought people, if you look at vice president herself, her first debate in the 2019 involved a direct attack on the now president biden. and he made her his vice president. and so that is the kind of president he is. that is the kind of person he is. the kind of leader he is and the office tonight with this historic address and see that

on the campaign trail in the months ahead. >> ron i had david haag lined up to join the show to talk about the huge surge in fundraising, for kamala harris, a number of young voters like him. he has agreed to step aside tonight for you to stay with us . so we will be right back with more from ron klain.

dealdash.com, online auctions since 2009. this playstation 5 sold for only 50 cents. this ipad pro sold for less than $34. and this nintendo switch, sold for less than $20. go to dealdash.com and see how much you can save.

i am vice president of the

united states of america. the president sets the policy. i am absolutely comfortable with the fact that men marrying women, women marrying women and heterosexual women and men are entitled to the same exact rights, all the civil rights, all the civil liberties and quite friendly, i don't see much of a distinction beyond that. >> ron kane is still with us. for me, one of the things that was so surprising about that moment was the vice president getting ahead of the president. if you said to me which vice president got ahead of the president on policy, i never would have picked joe biden because he is so careful about his professional approach to those roles. how did that happen? >> i think the then vice president didn't think he was getting ahead of presidential policies. i don't set the administration's policy, he was speaking from the heart about his personal views, about his values and he is always going to be honest about that. he was very honest that day

that he thought that the quality, marriage equality was a core value. what he believed in as a civil liberty and he was just offering his own personal view and he made it very clear that he wasn't speaking on behalf of the administration saying that and it did cause some consternation inside of the west wing. but ultimately president obama adopted the same position and you know, it was all good. i think great leaders lead from the heart and president biden has always led from the heart and that was a moment of that. >> ron, i think we have just been through some of the nastiest three weeks that i have ever seen in the history of the democratic party. a lot of accusations flying around from unnamed sources about what was really going on inside the biden white house. all unnamed sources, of course, bringing -- blaming high-level staff for somehow creating this crisis by somehow hiding how president biden actual condition was.

we all saw this same president on march 7th at the state of the union, unhindered by anyone, delivering the best state of the union address that i've ever seen. how do you respond to people who were saying right up until sunday that somehow this crisis was the fault of the biden staff , campaign and white house? >> i think that is ridiculous and unfair. in addition to the state of the union, the president was out everyday doing events and doing events where he did not -- took questions from the press, q&a sessions. and everyone can watch those. and you know, i see what he has done since the debate. where he went and did favors can pain speech in north carolina. in michigan, give that press conference, a masterful press conference on foreign policy and some domestic issues, as well. and did a number of tv interviews with lester holt,

for example. or stephanopoulos. i think the president has conducted his job. i think he has been accessible to the american people and i think, obviously, he is older, he has been honest with us about that. but look, dean phillips, the congressman from minnesota ran against joe biden and the democratic artese and said he is too old, he should not be are nominee and democrats went and voted and even new hampshire where joe biden wasn't on the ballot, he won 4- 1 against dean phillips. new hampshire democrats are a skeptic whole lot and to go in and write joe biden showed the support he had in our party. the decision he made was a generous decision but it was a generous decision to point a path forward into past the church to vice president harris. let's get behind the best qualified person to lead the party in this campaign, a person who has shown her qualifications in her 3 1/2

years as vice president. representative on the world stage. a key part of the achievements of this administration and strong views about the path or would pick let's put the baton in her hand for the next lab. i think it was a courageous decision about the president and a powerful decision about the president. one that plays off this year. >> run, those 36 years ago you made a decision to go to work for joe biden. >> yeah? >> why joe biden? >> to then senator biden but a political consultant who i worked with in massachusetts. john martella who helped run biden's first campaign back in 1972. a team to get him ready for his 1988 presidential campaign and i was really impressed by that presidents wit and charm, his kindness, his good heart and his leadership ability for the country. had a vision, lawrence, the past few decades would take it on the chin in this country. manufacturing jobs that have gone overseas, kind of hollowed out and the past two years joe biden reversed that.

for the first time since 1964, adding manufacturing jobs so people that a college degree can get a good six-figure job. we have added 60 million jobs total to the economy. our economy is the envy of the world forgot the president referred to tonight, when he came to office before china passes us, no one thinks china is going to pass us because we have grown our economy so strong. so i have always been impressed by the president dedication to the middle class. it feels like the kind of feeling i grew up in in indianapolis, indiana. claymont, delaware he is a person who has never forgotten where he came from. still has those values and real dedication to civil rights and civil liberties. and shown about his career. and you know, i think biden has not changed in those 36 years. >> ron klain, thank you very much for joining us on this historic night. i simply cannot thank you enough and i just want to take a personal privilege to say it

was an honor for me to be able to work with you when we did and the united states senate, i am honored to have you here tonight. the thank you, lawrence. i appreciate the opportunity to be here. >> we will be right back.

our lod when others won't, but it's under siege from big out-of-state media companies and hedge funds. now, california legislators are considering a bill that could make things even worse by subsidizing national and global media corporations while reducing the web traffic local papers rely on. so tell lawmakers, support local journalism, not well connected media companies. oppose ab 886. paid for by ccia.

>> ron klain, who served in joe biden's senate staff, president obama's white house staff and finally as president biden's white house chief of staff gets tonight's last word. the 11th hour with stephanie ruhle starts now. tonight, biden passes the torch and defends his