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>> good evening and welcome to pbs news special coverage of president biden's address to the nation. i'm jeff bennett. >> i'm on none of oz. his first appearance since ending his reelection campaign three days ago and endorsing kamala harris to replace him as the democratic presidential nominee. geoff: president biden had been isolating with a covid diagnosis for the last several days. yesterday, he tested negative and returned to the white house. amna: let's go quickly now to laura perrone lopez. what should we expect to hear from the president tonight? laura: he will explain why he bowed out of the race and say that defending democracy is more important than any job title. amna: the president will be joining us shortly from the oval office.

we will have full analysis here with our panel of experts to follow. we will bring you the president's remarks as soon as he joins us. the first time he is speaking publicly since ending his reelection campaign just three days ago. let's go live to the president. >> my fellow americans. i am behind the resolute desk in the oval office. in this sacred space, we are surrounded by portraits of extraordinary american presidents. thomas jefferson. he wrote the words that guide this nation. george washington 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's been the honor of my life to serve as your president. in the defense of democracy,

which is at stake, is more important than any title. i find joy and strength in working for the american people. this sacred task of perfecting our union is not about me. it's about you. your families. your futures. it's about we the people. we can never forget that. i never have. i've made it clear that i believe america is at an inflection point. one of those rare moments in history when the decisions we make now will determine the fate of our nation and the world for decades to come. america will have to choose between moving forward or backward. between hope and hate. between unity and division. we have to decide, do we still believe in honesty, decency, respect? freedom, justice, democracy?

in this moment, we can see those we disagree with not as enemies but his fellow americans. can we do that? does character in public life still matter? i believe we know the answer to these questions. i know you, the american people. and i know this. we are a great nation because we are good people. when you elected me to this office, i promised to always be level with you. get to tell you the truth. the truth, the sacred cause of this country is larger than anyone of us. those of us who cherish that cause cherish it so much. we must unite to protect it. in recent weeks, it's become clear to me that i need to unite my party in this critical endeavor. i believe i record as president,

my leadership in the world, my vision for america's future all married and the second term. but nothing could come in the way of saving our democracy. that includes personal ambition. so i've decided the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation. it's the best way to unite our nation. i know there's a time and a place for long years of experience in public life. there's also a time and place for new voices, fresh choices. yes, younger voices. that time and place is now. over the next six months, i will be focused on doing my job as president. that means i will continue to lower costs for hard-working families. grow our economy. i will keep defending our personal freedoms and our civil rights. the right to vote to the right

to choose. i will keep calling out hate and extremism. make it clear that there's no place in america for political violence or any violence ever. i'm going to keep speaking out to protect our kids from gun violence, our planet from the climate crisis. it's an existential threat. i will keep fighting for my cancer moonshot so we can and cancer as we know it. we can do it. i will call for supreme court reform. because this is critical to our democracy. supreme court reform. you know, i will keep working to ensure americans remain strong and secure and the leader of the free world. i'm the first president in this century to report to the american people that the united states is not at war anywhere in the world. we will keep rallying a

coalition of proud nations to stop putin from taking over ukraine and doing more damage. we will keep nato stronger. make it more powerful and you -- more united than any time in our history. i will keep doing the same for allies in the pacific. when i came to office, the conventional wisdom was that china would inevitably pass the united states. that's not the case anymore. and i'm going to keep working to end the war in gaza, bring home all the hostages, and bring peace and security to the middle east and in this war. we are also working to bring home americans being unjustly detained all around the world. no, we've come so far since my in occupation. that day i told you, as i stood in a winter of peril and a winter of possibilities.

peril and possibilities. we were in the grip of the worst pandemic in a century. the worst economic crisis since the great depression. the worst attack on our democracy since the civil war. we came together as americans. we got through it. we emerged stronger, more prosperous, more secure. today, we have the strongest in the -- economy in the world, creating 60 million new jobs. wages are up. inflation continues to come down. the racial wealth gap is the lowest it's been in 20 years. we are rebuilding our entire nation. urban, suburban, rural, tribal communities. manufacturing has come back to america. we are leading the world in chips and science and innovation. we finally beat big pharma after all of these years to lower the cost of prescription drugs for seniors. i'm going to keep fighting to make sure we lower the cost for everyone, not just seniors.

more people have health care today in america than ever before. the most significant laws helping millions of veterans and their families who are exposed to toxic materials. you know, the most significant climate law ever in the history of the world. the first major gun safety law in 30 years. today, the violent crime rate is at a 50 year low. we are also securing our border. border crossings are lower today than when the previous administration left office. i kept my commitment to appoint the first black woman to the supreme court of the united states of america. i kept my commitment to have an administration that looks like america. a president for all americans. that's what i've done. i ran for president four years ago because i believed that the soul of america was at stake. the very nature of who we are

was at stake. that is still the case. america is an idea. an idea stronger than any armory. bigger than any ocean. more powerful than any dictator or tyrant. the most powerful idea in the history of the world. we hold these truths to be self-evident. we are all created equal. endowed by our creator with certain unalienable rights. we've never fully lived up to it, to this sacred idea. but we've never walked away from it either. i don't believe the american people walk away from it now. in just a few months, the american people will choose the course of america's future. i made my choice. i made my views known. i'd like to think our great vice president kamala harris. she's experienced. she's tough. she's capable.

she's been an incredible partner to me and a leader for our country. now the choice is up to you, the american people. you make that choice. remember the words of benjamin franklin, hanging on my wall here in the oval office. alongside the bust of dr. king and rosa parks in cesar chavez. when ben franklin was asked as he emerged from the convention going on, whether the founders had given america a republic, his response was, the republic if you can keep it. the republic if you can keep it. whether we keep our republic is now in your hands. my fellow americans, it's been the privilege of my life to serve this nation for over 50 years. nowhere else on earth could have

such modest beginnings. sitting 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. of ordinary americans doing extra ordinary things. i've given my heart and my soul to my nation. like so many others. i've been blessed a million times in 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. there is simply nothing beyond our capacity. if we do it together. so let's act together. preserve our democracy. god bless you all. may god protect our troops. thank you. geoff: president biden speaking to the nation from the oval office, making a case for his legacy. sweeping domestic legislation. the renewal of alliances abroad. the defense of democracy. for sending himself as the bridge candidate that he vowed to be in 2020 and ultimately became this past weekend. let's turn to our panel for more reporting and analysis. we are joined by kevin madden, guy cecil, douglas brinkley, and laura perrone lopez. you heard president biden say, i revere the office but i love this country more. react to what you heard. >> he went into the speech wanting to do three things. he wanted to talk about his own

legacy. the historic achievements of this ministration, the progress of the country. he wanted to talk about what he wanted to do for the last six month of his administration. second, he wanted to draw an explicit comparison between the two candidates that will be on the ballot. talking about passing it onto the next generation of america and being the bridge candidate. third, the two things that you question -- the questions were really important. do we believe that our opponents are enemies or are they fellow americans? do we believe that character matters? the end of the speech really wrapped that up, talking about his own service to the country, his care for the country, and the humility he feels as serving as president. i thought he did a great job. amna: a lot of folks are turning in because they want more of an explanation about why the president made the decision he did. there's been a lot of reporting about his meetings with his closest advisors to help them

get to that decision. he said here, i believe my record of president merited a second term. but nothing gets in the way of democracy, including personal ambition. what did you take away from that expo nation? >> overall, this was an underwhelming address. he failed to answer some of the questions and concerns that american people have about whether he's capable to finish the rest of his term. those are really real concerns given the covid diagnoses he had only a week ago. the other thing is the way he delivered his speech, reinforcing the concerns that people had. very low energy. he stumbled over his delivery. so i think one of the things is that he tiptoed close to a political speech. he wanted to draw a contrast between the two candidates in the presidential race and reference kamala harris.

this was in oval office speech where the american public is looking to hear a bit more of a unity message from their president and a message about his current position. it did tiptoe into a political approach. >> by mentioning her and saying, i have made my preference clear. >> he hit on the unity message but that was somewhat dulled by how political it felt. this was a very memorable moment but it was a very unmemorable message and delivery from the president. geoff: let's bring in doug brinkley. this entire thing has been unprecedented. this word has been kicked around a lot this election cycle. the sitting president and incumbent abandoning his bid this late. there are some parallels. namely lbj who in march of 1968 famously said he would not seek or accept the nomination of the party. what parallels do you see between our 36th and 46th

president? >> for starters, i think the main thing he accomplished is that he's no longer -- he had covid but he's back. he used the oval office to say, i'm in charge. that's why he named so many presidents. the greats. lincoln, washington, jefferson, rosa parks, cesar chavez. i'm important and i'm in the oval office. he got that across. when lbj dropped out in 1968, it had the effect of everybody couldn't believe it, shock and all because he did it unexpectedly at the end of march. in this case, president biden had basically said this in his social media announcement. it went everywhere. we've been talking about it for days. there wasn't any memorable line tonight or something that will be remembered in history. i agree he seemed weak in presentation, considering this

is a big moment to get across to the american people. what we are hoping is that his health is good. it's been an issue. the white house stubbornly doesn't want to talk about it. is he incognitive decline? is he not? what's going on? nobody has been quite comfortable with their answers. because it could be, if he had not -- if he's been infirm for a while, that creates a legacy issue. it was like a mini farewell address for a president that still has six long months to lead the nation. amna: let's bring in laura at the white house. you are watching this unfold as were we hear. to pick up on some of these points, many of those questions that voters have had about the president's ability to carry forward his duties, about any kind of decline, they weren't necessarily answer tonight. is that something that the white house wanted to expose it we address? what did you take away?

laura: part of the president coming back to the white house, giving this address from the oval was to give this presentation that he is back at the white house, doing his work. he's going to continue to do the work for the remainder of his term. there's a lot that he wants to accomplish in the time that he has left. he wants to get a cease-fire deal. he also is going to try to do as much as he can on nato and ukraine to keep those alliances together. the white house press secretary did address that question today. she was asked about the president's health. she said he did not bow out of the race because of his health. that had nothing to do with it. so i expect that the white house is going to be asked again multiple questions about whether or not the president still has the fitness and capability to

finish the job. he maintains that he does. what stood out in the speech was how heartfelt and emotional he was. he talked about being grateful for being able to serve as the president. talked about being someone who was a kid with a stutter, being able to rise to this level, to this office and hold it. you can really hear that he still felt like he may be could have one the election. that is something that he really held tight to. he thought that he very well could have beaten trump. now we will never know. it wasn't until right before this past sunday that the president ultimately decided that it was time for him to bow out. it was in large part because he had lost a lot of the backing of the leaders across his party. geoff: let's shift our prayer -- focus to vice president harris now that she's a likely nominee. how does she establish herself? how does she distinguish herself? you have an incumbent still in office who very much wants to remain part of the debate. >> is always a challenge for any

vice president when they are still serving in the administration. if you look at her performance over the last three days, she has united the party. she has collected 127 million dollars in grassroots contributions. 70% of those were first-time contributors. they've recruited 72,000 new volunteers. she is given to the three speeches every day, drawing a sharp contrast. not just focused on the administration record but focused on her long career as a prosecutor and attorney general, as the senator from california. her number one job is to use this opportunity to reintroduce herself to the american people. i can tell you from internal polling from the pack that i worked for, priorities usa. over the span of the last few days, we saw a six point deficit for president biden turn into a one point deficit between president trump and kamala harris. reconciling our democratic base,

starting to move suburban women back to our coalition. that looks more like 20 20's and it did like 2016. >> he brings up a good point. i think the chance to really do a better job of articulating the administration's economic record and their economic message in key battleground states, i think vice president kamala harris is going to relish that opportunity. tonight, we saw some of the problems that joe biden had with the energy and enthusiasm and the crystallize message. where the challenge comes is on the things that you are out of your control. national security. foreign policy. diplomatic postures that the president is going to have to take to get a cease-fire done. she may have to take some positions that run counter to the administration. that's where you can have tension inside abide in white house with a kamala harris campaign for president on the campaign trail. amna: douglas, weigh in on that.

we don't need to delve too far into the political. from a contextual point of view, you have a man who just delivered an oval office address . someone who spent 50 years in public service and office in some form. tensioning some parts of his legacy from these last four years in office. and then you have him passing the torch to a younger, newer, fresher voice. how much of that message today do you expect to be carry forward in a harris campaign? >> if we are going to take president biden at his word that he has passed the torch to kamala harris, he needs to get out of her way. she's got an incredible sprint to election day. she's trending. she's popular. she's building momentum. she may have to deviate on issues somewhat. she may have to deviate on something dealing with climate change. president biden has to let kamala harris be herself.

she is showing she can do it. i know he loves her and he trusts her. it's not clear to me, if you are sitting as president and stepped down, you have a 38% approval rating. i don't know you are a help on the campaign trail. she white -- might want to embrace biden policies but also maybe not quite do it that way. otherwise she could become hubert humphrey. he could never shake lbj. he got to chicago and had to fight mccarthy and others. harris doesn't have a movement in the democratic party working against her. but she has the anchor of biden, the good and the bad. so take the good, distance herself from the rest, and let harris and her new vp be the real torchbearers as biden has suggested that she is. geoff: how was the campaign thing about that? if president biden is a negative draw for some voters, how are

they thinking about navigating that? >> we've heard from the president himself that he would like to be out there and help her campaign. i think that what we are going to see from harris is that she's the one that's going to lead a very different schedules and president biden did. there was frustration from some democrats that president biden was not holding as many rallies as he could, traveling to as many states as he could, as they thought he should. vice president harris has a much better stamina because she is younger and she has already demonstrated, in the amount of phone calls she's made across-the-board, to show that she's tapped in. she's ready to go. that's a big change that i've been hearing from democrats. a lot of democrats say they feel as though she is already changing the math. the states that looked as though they were closing are starting to open back up again. they have a lot more hope when

it comes to georgia in north carolina than they did just days ago when they thought that they were going to have to focus on those blue wall states. so that is something that you are hearing from the campaign. i think you will see a lot of these other democrats that were considered the bench and some wanted to challenge kamala harris for the nomination, you will see a lot of those governors out there in force as surrogates for her. amna: do you expect harris to break dramatically from biden or do it over time? >> i don't expect any major break from the administration that she served in. she's around person. she's proved it over her career. i'm sure there will be differences over the course of time. she's part of this administration and she will run on that record. amna: thank you all for joining us tonight. that concludes our pbs news special coverage of the president's address. we hope you will join us tomorrow for the news hour. geoff: thanks very much for

joining us. >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. ♪

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