President Biden delivered a powerful opening speech on Tuesday night welcoming foreign leaders to NATO’s 75th anniversary summit in Washington, D.C. The speech was highly anticipated as members of Biden’s own party and foreign leaders expressed concerns about his fitness to serve as president and his continuing reelection campaign.
Speaking on Tuesday night, Biden welcomed world leaders to the summit, praised NATO’s strength, looked to the future and sought to project strength amid turmoil within his Democratic Party over the continued success of his own re-election effort.
Biden launches “phone campaign” to spur reelection, Democrats start flocking back to his camp
Biden appeared to bounce back on Tuesday night, delivering a powerful speech without any major missteps or setbacks.
President Joe Biden speaks during a service at Mount Airy Church of God in Christ, Sunday, July 7, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Senator)
“NATO is stronger today than it has ever been,” Biden said Tuesday night. “This moment in history calls for our united strength, and it’s good that we’re stronger than we’ve ever been. Dictators seek to upend a world order that has held together for nearly 80 years. Terrorist groups continue to plot their evil plans, sowing mayhem, chaos and suffering in Europe. Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine continues, and he wants Ukraine’s total subjugation to end it.”
The Russia-Ukraine war began under the Biden administration.
“Ukraine can and will stop Putin,” Biden said. “Russia will not win. Ukraine will win.”
During his speech, Biden announced a historic donation of air defense equipment to Ukraine, with the United States, Germany, the Netherlands, Romania and Italy joining forces to provide Ukraine with equipment for five more strategic air defense systems.
Biden also awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Tuesday night, at the opening of the summit in Washington DC.
FILE – NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, right, speaks with U.S. President Joe Biden at a NATO Ukraine Council meeting during the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, July 12, 2023. U.S. President Joe Biden and the NATO secretary general are meeting in Washington this week to mark the 75th anniversary of the world’s largest security organization as Russia gains the upper hand on the Ukrainian battlefield. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File)
“Much of the progress we’ve made at the alliance is thanks to the secretary,” Biden said, adding that Stoltenberg has led NATO through “one of the most critical periods in its history.”
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“The fruits of your labor will be felt all around the world in the form of security, opportunity and greater freedom for years to come,” Biden said. “For these reasons, I am pleased to award you the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor the United States can bestow.”
The three-day summit, which began Tuesday, will focus on how to assure Ukraine of NATO’s enduring support and give its war-weary people hope that they can weather Europe’s biggest land conflict in decades. NATO’s day-to-day operations are led by Stoltenberg, a former Norwegian prime minister, and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who steps down on October 1, will take over as secretary-general.
A reporter works in the media center at the NATO summit in Washington, DC, July 9, 2024. NATO is holding its annual summit in Washington this week to mark the 75th anniversary of its founding. (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
Biden’s Tuesday night speech came at a critical time for his presidential future and the possibility of a second term.
Biden and the White House insist they will continue to campaign for reelection in 2024.
Sources told Fox News Digital that Biden has been making personal calls to Democratic colleagues, supporters and donors to ease concerns, and the strategy appears to be working.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York has voiced support for the president, along with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York.
Rank-and-file Democrats in the House of Representatives, as well as several Democratic senators, rallied behind the president.
Biden also received endorsements from the Congressional Black Caucus and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus on Monday night.
But a Democratic source told Fox News Digital that the “reality” is that with Election Day just four months away, Democrats “cannot easily field a replacement who can beat Trump this late in the process”.
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“The reality is, if we want to win, it’s too late to replace that player, that’s all,” a source told Fox News Digital.
Additionally, despite reports that major donors are considering withdrawing their support, sources told Fox News Digital that those donors “have personal relationships with Biden that go back decades.”
“The loyalty is there and he has implemented many of the Democratic policies,” a source told Fox News Digital. “Even though Biden has given her access to world leaders and other opportunities over the years, Kamala has not proven herself worthy of being the replacement.”
