BIDEN WON’T RUN FOR PRESIDENT

East County News Service

October 21, 2015 (Washington D.C.) – Vice President Joe Biden today announced he will not run for the presidency, ending months of speculation that he might enter the Democratic primary to challenge front runners Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders.

Biden lost his son, Beau, to cancer earlier this year and said his family needed time for grieving. Now he says, “I believe we’re out of time, the time necessary to mount a winning campaign for the nomination.”

A recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll showed Biden trailing both Clinton and Sanders nationally among Democratic voters.

But Biden said he will not be silent, even though he is out of the race.  He stated, “I intend to speak out clearly and forcefully to influence as much as I can where we stand as a party and where we need to go as a nation.” 

Joined by President Barack Obama as he made his announcement, Biden pledged to support medical research to cure cancer, also calling for strengthening the middle class and making education affordable.

Both Clinton and Sanders issued statements praising the Vice President. 

Former Secretary of State Clinton sent a Tweet calling Biden a “a good friend and a great man” adding that she remains “inspired by his optimism and commitment to change the world for the better.”

Senator Sanders issued a statement calling Biden a “good friend” and thanking the Vice President for “a lifetime of public service and for all that he has done for our nation. I look forward to continuing to work with him to address the major crises we face."