President Biden’s single term in office will be marked by several moments that saw the White House take the spotlight.
It began with the pandemic and a raucous State of the Union. Then there was the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and his handling of wars in Ukraine and Gaza. Ultimately, his age and questions about his stamina led to him dropping out of the 2024 race that ended his decades-long political career.
Here are the top dramatic moments of Biden’s presidency.
The raucous 2023 State of the Union
During his 2023 State of the Union address, Biden sparred with Republican lawmakers over potential cuts to Social Security with a lively back-and-forth in the House chamber.
He argued that “some Republicans want Social Security and Medicare to sunset” and Republicans yelled back, “no,” which prompted the president to ad-lib about people contacting his office if they don’t believe him.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) stood up and pointed her finger at Biden, and yelled “liar.” Biden replied, “I don’t think it’s a majority of you, I don’t even think it’s a significant” before more jeers from Republicans.
“So folks, as we all apparently agree, Social Security and Medicare is off the books now, right?” Biden said.
“Alright,” he added, with a thumbs-up, while Democrats and some Republicans stood up to cheer.
Biden spent much of his speech urging unity to kick off the second half of his presidency following the 2022 midterm elections, but a back-and-forth inside the chamber with Republicans was the key takeaway from the address.
At the time, it offered Biden and the White House an example of the president’s stamina, which Democrats used as an example when arguing Biden was fit enough to run for reelection.
Ukraine speech
In March 2022, Biden gave a fiery speech in Poland about his support for Ukraine a month after Russia’s invasion, during which he said that Russian President Vladimir Putin can’t remain in power.
“Ukraine will never be a victory for Russia, for free people refuse to live in a world of hopelessness and darkness. We will have a different future, a brighter future, rooted in democracy and principles, hope and light, of decency and dignity, of freedom, and possibilities,” Biden said during a speech in front of the Polish presidential palace. “For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power.”
The crowd he spoke to was made up of Polish citizens, Ukrainian refugees and government officials from both countries. But, his stern remarks led to a clean-up operation from the White House and officials at the time attempted to argue that Biden’s comments meant Putin should not have power outside of Russia.
A year later, the president made a surprise trip to Kyiv to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which involved a covert journey to the war-torn country on a 10-hour train ride from Poland to Kyiv. He is the only commander-in-chief to visit a war zone not controlled by U.S. forces.
Afghanistan withdrawal
The August 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan was a major bruise on Biden’s legacy early into his presidency and is seen as the start of a long and windy downfall for his presidency.
When hectic images out of the Kabul airport surfaced, Americans at home could see how chaotic the troop removal was. Then, a suicide bombing at the Kabul airport killed 13 U.S. service members who were helping to evacuate people from the country.
Biden was told to “burn in hell” by a family member of one of the 13 fallen service members in Kabul when the remains of troops arrived at Dover Air Force Base.
Biden was personally involved in solving problems at the Kabul airport during the withdrawal, directing people on the ground to find ways to get Afghans at risk out of the country, according to a recent book.The nature of the withdrawal and the several deaths led to investigations from House Republicans, who dropped a long-awaited report in September. It painted Biden as determined to leave the country but fumbling preparation, criticizing him for a rushed effort regardless of counsel from allies and advisers that led to unnecessary deaths.
Hur report
A March 2024 release of a transcript of special counsel Robert Hur’s two-day interview with Biden for his investigation into the president’s handling of classified materials gave Republicans and critics new ammunition to go after his age — and gave the public a window into the president’s fitness for office.
Biden had not engaged in many press interviews, in print or television, so the Hur report released amid the president’s campaign for reelection fueled concerns over Biden’s age.
Hur described the president as a “well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory” in the report, which recommended no charges against Biden for his handling of classified documents. One of the most notable exchanges to come out of Hur’s final report was when the special counsel wrote that Biden struggled to remember key dates and details, including when his son Beau died. The White House and Biden himself went on the attack.
Disastrous debate
Biden and Trump had their first and only 2024 presidential debate on June 27, moderated by CNN. It began immediately with Biden fumbling his answers and giving confused looks.
Biden’s disastrous performance, one that lasted 90 minutes, set off a series of events that led to him ultimately dropping his reelection bid.
Biden’s voice was hoarse, he struggled to finish sentences and he tripped over his words while discussing key topics like border security and the economy.
He appeared to lose his train of thought while mixing up the terms Medicare and COVID and Trump took aim at him for slurring his comments. His team at the time said that Biden had a cold to explain his slow start and raspy voice.
Democratic operatives were the first to call for him to drop out, followed by the first Democratic lawmaker, Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), on July 2.
Pressure then built from party leaders like former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and former President Obama, who were in part behind urging lawmakers to publicly call for the president to drop out and warning Biden that he could lose to Trump. At the time of the debate, Biden was trailing Trump in the polls, especially in the pivotal battleground states.
Drops reelection bid
Once the flood gates were open with Democratic lawmakers calling for him to drop out, Biden was unable to stop the bleeding. In early July, he and his team spoke with Democratic congressional leadership and Democratic governors and he sat for an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos in an effort to show he can participate in unscripted events.
He campaigned in Wisconsin, where he fought back against critics, and he gave a defiant interview on “Morning Joe” to dare other Democrats to challenge him at the convention in August.
At this time, the White House also faced a series of questions over visitor logs that showed a neurologist who specializes in Parkinson’s disease visited the campus several times in recent months. There was then a brief pause in calls from lawmakers for Biden to step down in the aftermath of the assassination attempt against Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania
The president sat for another interview, with NBC’s Lester Holt, to defend the fallout from the debate. Days later, he tested positive for COVID-19 when he was campaigning in Las Vegas.
While isolating at his home in Rehoboth Beach, Del., with a growing list of sitting Democrats urging him to drop out, Biden and a small circle of his closest advisers ultimately made the decision to do so.
He announced he would no longer seek another four years in office on July 21 in a letter shared on X and then later endorsed Vice President Harris to be the party’s nominee Harris had just over 100 days to run against Trump and lost decisively in November.
