After months of tortured indecision, Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday he won\u2019t be a candidate in the 2016 White House campaign, solidifying Hillary Rodham Clinton\u2019s status as the Democratic front-runner and the party\u2019s likely heir to President Barack Obama\u2019s legacy.<\/p>\n
Standing under bright sun in the White House Rose Garden, Biden spoke movingly about mourning the recent death of his son, Beau, a process he said does not match the political calendar. While he said his family was emotionally prepared to undertake a grueling presidential campaign, they arrived at that decision too late for him to mount a credible bid for a job that has long been the north star of his political ambitions.<\/p>\n
\n
\u201cUnfortunately, I believe we\u2019re out of time,\u201d said Biden, flanked by his wife, Jill, and the president.<\/p>\n
Biden\u2019s decision puts to rest the uncertainty hanging over the Democratic primary. The race now will likely settle into a two-person contest between Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has energized the party\u2019s liberal base but lacks Clinton\u2019s campaign infrastructure and support from party leaders.<\/p>\n
Biden was seen by some Democrats as an ideal blend of Clinton\u2019s establishment credentials and Sanders\u2019 populist appeal. Interest in his potential candidacy was fueled both by an outpouring of affection after his son succumbed to cancer in May and the persistent questions about Clinton\u2019s viability, particularly amid revelations about her controversial email use at the State Department.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote><\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Vice-president Joe Biden announced that he would not run for president.\u00a0 This pretty much assures that the Democratic nominee will be Hillary Clinton.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1281,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[3457,4056,4004],"class_list":["post-22436","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-2016-presidential-election","tag-democratic-presidential-candidates","tag-joe-biden"],"yoast_head":"\n
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