President Joe Biden said he has no regrets about his presidency that saw massive inflation, a disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan that cost the lives of more than a dozen American service members, and a landslide victory for President-elect Donald Trump.
Conservative CNN commenter Scott Jennings shredded Biden for his lack of self-awareness during a segment last week.
“The fact that he didn’t say, I regret that 13 American service members lost their lives in Afghanistan, to me, that he can’t muster the courage to say that now is a disgrace,” he said. “Beyond that, he’s leaving office in disgrace.”
“Less than 30% of the American people think the country is on the right track. That’s lower than on election day. And what’s happened since Election Day? He pardoned his son, Hunter. He commuted the sentences of a bunch of evil killer thugs on federal death row. Not all of them, just the ones that he wanted to. He didn’t even make a principled stand on that,” the commentator said.
“And then he went on vacation, which is where he is right now,” he said. “This is a failed, disgraced president, and he has never, ever owned up to what happened in Afghanistan and the role that played in destroying those families’ lives and destroying his own presidency.”
But the president does have one regret, and it is self-serving.
Biden reportedly continues to regret his decision to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race last summer after facing mounting pressure from Democrats to step aside, according to a new report.
The Washington Post, citing sources familiar with the discussions, revealed that Biden has recently told confidants he still believes he could have defeated Donald Trump in the November election, despite a poor debate performance in June and low approval ratings that ultimately led to his exit from the race.
After the June 27 debate, calls from within the Democratic Party for Biden to step aside intensified, with increasing urgency for another candidate to take his place. The president also lost significant funding last summer as donors questioned his ability to defeat Trump.
Biden exited the race on July 21 and then immediately endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, who had just over three months to campaign before the election.
Trump ultimately defeated Harris by a margin of 2.2 million votes.
According to the Post, Biden has been cautious about blaming Harris for the loss, maintaining in conversations with aides that he believes he could have won the election.
Even when he dropped out, Biden still believed he could beat Trump – whom he defeated for his first term in 2020, according to The New York Times in September.
Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., may disagree, however.
Clyburn, who met with Biden earlier this year, told the Post that he had told the president, “Your style does not lend itself well to the environment we’re currently in,” while speaking of style versus substance.
Also, Biden’s national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, told the Post: “How to govern at this moment to set the U.S. up for long-term success has one answer, and how to govern to deal with midterm and presidential elections in the very short-term might have a different answer. The president went with doing the things that really put America in a strong position.”
In reflecting on missteps—including his debate performance—Biden has also expressed regret over appointing Merrick Garland as attorney general, according to the Post.
Biden reportedly chose Garland as a consensus pick based on advice from his aides. However, he has privately voiced frustration, believing Garland acted too slowly in prosecuting Trump while also asserting that his son Hunter was pursued too aggressively.
