President Joe Biden on Thursday said he has assured president-elect Donald Trump there will be “a peaceful and orderly transition. That’s what the American people deserve.”
Biden spoke from the Rose Garden at the White House after Democrat Kamala Harris lost this week to Donald Trump, speaking to a crowd of staffers and other supporters.
“For over 200 years, America has carried out the greatest experiment in self-government in the history of the world,” Biden said.
“The people vote and choose their own leaders, and they do it peacefully,” he said. “In a democracy, the will of the people always prevails.”
The president reiterated that the U.S. election system “is honest, it is fair, and it is transparent. And it can be trusted, win or lose.”
He also praised Vice President Kamala Harris, who stepped into the role of presidential nominee after Biden stepped aside, saying “she and her entire team should be very proud of the campaign that they ran.”
Biden called Trump Wednesday to congratulate him and invite him to the White House. Biden’s chief of staff later Wednesday nudged the Trump team to sign the required federal agreements necessary to begin an orderly presidential transition, a White House official said.
The Republicans won control of the U.S. Senate early Wednesday, but control over the U.S. House of Representatives still hangs in the balance, with dozens of races left to be called.
Biden’s Rose Garden remarks were his first appearance on camera in the aftermath of Trump ’s decisive victory.
“Setbacks are unavoidable,” he said. “But giving up is unforgivable. … The America of your dreams is calling for you to get back up.”
Biden’s pledge of a smooth transition was a subtle nod to how Trump, as president, handled things in 2020. Trump refused to accept he lost the election and, on the day Congress certified the results, addressed a crowd near the White House and urged them to march on the Capitol.
Once there, the mob fought with police, broke into the building and disrupted the certification for hours.
Biden closed by saying defeat doesn’t mean one is defeated.
“America endures,” he said. “We’re going to be ok, but we need to stay engaged.”