Harris' allies blame Biden for loss to Trump

As Democrats come to terms with the decisive victory of President-elect Donald Trump, some Harris' supporters are voicing frustration over Biden's decision to pursue re-election until late in the summer, despite voters’ longstanding concerns over his age. Furthermore, post-pandemic inflation concerns and the situation at the US-Mexico border ultimately shaped Biden’s party's concession to the White House.

Andrew Yang, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate who backed Harris’ unsuccessful bid, echoed this stance.

“The biggest onus of this loss is on President Biden. If he had stepped down in January instead of July, we may be in a very different place,” he stated.

The Associated Press recalls that Biden will leave office after leading the United States through the most severe pandemic in a century, securing international support for Ukraine following Russia's invasion, and signing a $1 trillion infrastructure bill that will impact communities for years.

But, having launched his bid four years ago against Trump to “restore the soul of the country,” Biden will, after only one term, make way for his immediate predecessor — the same one who survived two impeachments, criminal convictions, and a supporter-led insurrection. Trump has vowed to drastically overhaul the federal government and reverse many of Biden’s key policies.

Thom Reilly, co-director of the Center for an Independent and Sustainable Democracy at Arizona State University, noted that some of Biden’s achievements may be remembered by history, though not in the near term.

“Maybe in 20 or 30 years, history will remember Biden for some of these achievements. But in the shorter term, I don’t know if he escapes the legacy of being the president who beat Donald Trump only to usher in another Donald Trump administration four years later,” he said.