Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday that he is not running for president of the United States because the window “has closed.”
In an announcement speech in the Rose Garden at the White House, Biden, alongside his wife and President Barack Obama, indicated that he does not plan to challenge Hillary Clinton because “I believe we’re out of time.”
“The time necessary to mount a winning campaign for the nomination,” he said. (RELATED: Biden Takes Direct Shot At Clinton During Speech)
Joe Biden: As my family and I have worked through the grieving process, I’ve said all along, what I’ve said time and again to others, that it may very well be that that process, by the time we get through it, closes the window on mounting a realistic campaign for president. That it might close. I’ve concluded it has closed. I know from previous experience that there is no timetable for this process. The process doesn’t respect or much care about things like filing deadlines or debates and primaries and caucuses. But I also know that I could do this, if I couldn’t do this if the family wasn’t ready. The good news is the family has reached that point, but as I’ve said many times, my family has suffered loss. And I — I hope there would come a time, and I’ve said this to many other families, that sooner rather than later, when you think of your loved one, it brings a smile to your lips before it brings a tear to your eyes. Well, that’s where the Bidens are today. Thank God. Beau — Beau is our inspiration. Unfortunately, I believe we’re out of time, the time necessary to mount a winning campaign for the nomination. But while I will not be a candidate, I will not be silent. 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.