George Clooney has broken his silence following the historic decision by President Joe Biden to step down as the 2024 presidential nominee for the Democrats.
The actor, the first high-profile figure to publicly call for Joe to bow out of the race following a disastrous debate with Donald Trump, has praised the career-politician for his "true leadership," and endorsed Kamala Harris in her bid to win the 2024 election.
"President Biden has shown what true leadership is. He’s saving democracy once again. We’re all so excited to do whatever we can to support Vice President Harris in her historic quest," said George in a statement.
© Lia TobyOn July 10, the Oscar-winning actor, who has held fundraising events for nominees over the past few decades, wrote an Op-Ed in the New York Times in which he called Joe a friend before suggesting that "the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fund-raiser was not the Joe 'big F-ing deal' Biden of 2010".
"He wasn’t even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate," George continued.
A campaign official responded by telling CNN that "George Clooney left [the event] three hours before the president".
© Paul MorigiSTAR REELS
However, his remarks fanned the flames, and it was reported that the Democratic Party leaders including former President Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer had all privately met with Biden to discuss his future and why stepping down was the best thing for the country.
The president announced the news with a statement on Sunday July 21, saying: "It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term."
© Andrew HarnikBiden has already endorsed his Vice-President Kamala Harris as the party's nominee. The Democratic National Convention, which would have formally nominated Biden, does not take place until August and the party's rules confirm that the 3,934 delegates are "not bound" to cast their vote for Biden.
Instead, "all delegates to the National Convention pledged to a presidential candidate shall in all good conscience reflect the sentiments of those who elected them."
As Biden has withdrawn from the race, the decision on whom the delegates pick instead will, says Elaine Kamarck, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, often come down to who Biden may have signaled he wants to replace him.
"That would not bind the delegates but would obviously carry a lot of weight," she told AP News.
