Biden gets a rousing ovation from Democrats as he endorses Harris

Headlining night one of the Democratic National Convention, President Joe Biden told the crowd, 'I gave my best to you,' as he urged the party to work to elect Vice President Kamala Harris.

Biden, 81, received a hero’s welcome for the act of stepping aside for Harris, weeks after many in his party were pressuring him to drop his bid for reelection.

One month after an unprecedented mid-campaign switch, the opening night of the convention in Chicago was designed to give a graceful exit to the incumbent president and slingshot Harris toward a faceoff with Republican Donald Trump, whose comeback bid for the White House is viewed by Democrats as an existential threat.

On Monday, Biden insisted he did not harbor any ill will about the impending end of his tenure — despite reports to the contrary — and called on the party to unite around Harris.

“I made a lot of mistakes in my career, but I gave my best to you,” Biden said.

Speaking clearly and energetically, Biden relished the chance to defend his record, advocate for his vice president and go on the attack against Trump. His delivery was more reminiscent of the Biden who won in 2020 than the mumbling and sometimes incoherent one-time candidate whose debate performance sparked the downfall of his reelection campaign.

Visibly emotional when he took the stage, Biden was greeted by a more than four-minute-long ovation and chants of “Thank you Joe.”

“America, I love you,” he replied.

He called his selection of Harris as his running mate four years ago “the very first decision I made when I became our nominee, and it was the best decision I made my whole career.”

“She’s tough, she’s experienced and she has enormous integrity, enormous integrity,” he said. “Her story represents the best American story."

“And like many of our best presidents,” he added in a nod to his own career, “she was also vice president.”