Chicago: Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi has expressed gratitude to US President Joe Biden for his service to the nation for over 50 years after he announced not to seek re-election.

Speaking to ANI exclusively, Krishnamoorthi stated that Biden deserves "tremendous credit" for putting the country above himself and taking the step to not seek re-election.

"We are going to remain incredibly grateful to President Biden for his service to our country over five decades and now as president, he's accomplished in four years, what some presidents did not accomplish in eight years. And I think that he deserves tremendous credit for, you know, putting country above himself and taking the step that he did today," Krishnamoorthi said.

He termed Biden's announcement a "political earthquake."

Biden made the announcement from his home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where he has self-isolated since testing positive for COVID-19 Thursday night."It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President," Biden said in a letter addressed to Americans. "And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and my country for me to stand down and to focus solely on my duties as president for the rest of my term."

Shortly after his announcement Sunday, Biden also publicly endorsed his vice president, Kamala Harris, to take his place at the top of the ticket.

"I don't think anybody would know with 100 per cent certainty what's going to happen until it actually happens. And today, it was an earthquake, a political earthquake," Krishnamoorthi said.

Raja Krishnamoorthi has expressed confidence that Kamala Harris will receive tremendous support. "She will command tremendous support. And so now, you know that the Democratic National Committee needs to put forward a process for selecting or nominee. That'll happen very shortly," he said.

Responding to a question about the whole process that will take place to choose a presidential nominee, he said, "The short answer is everything is TBD right now. I know we only have four weeks until the convention. So you know to have a primary process may not be feasible, but you know, she has to be voted upon by the delegates and so that will be a ...process."

Stressing that there is unity among Democrats, Krishnamoorthi said there's an incredible burst of energy and enthusiasm and he has been receiving calls and messages and people are excited about what will happen next.

"Yeah, I do. I interestingly, I think there's an incredible burst of energy and enthusiasm today. You know, my phone has lit up with calls and messages and texts and people are really excited about what's to come. Most importantly, they are excited at the prospect of defeating Donald Trump. And that is, you know, that is something that many, many many Democrats feel strongly about, especially after the acceptance speech Donald Trump gave the other night at the RNC (Republican National Convention).

Krishnamoorthi said that Biden has been very friendly and he has faced struggles that average ordinary people have in their life. He recalled that Biden lost his one son to cancer and his first wife and daughter died in an accident.

Speaking about his fond memories with Biden, he said, "He has been very...,very friendly. He was friendly to my family when he met them as well. And I think that he's just to me kind of the picture of what it means to be somebody who really has lived has gone through the struggles that average ordinary people have in their life, who've suffered tremendous loss of life."

"As you know, his wife, his first wife died, his daughter died. His son died of cancer. His other son suffered substance use disorders. So he understands the pain of loss, the pain of struggle, the adversity that average ordinary people feel, and I think that is translated into the policies and programs that we had put in place as president. And people will forever be grateful to him for his service," he added.

Speaking to ANI, Krishnamoorthi said, "I think that Joe Biden today showed what a true America first policy looks like in putting the country above himself, stepping aside as a Democratic nominee for the presidency. You know, Joe Biden has had one of the most distinguished careers of public service of anybody in this country. And as president, he accomplished more in four years than what a lot of presidents have accomplished in eight.

"We can talk about his work with regard to the bipartisan infrastructure deal, his work in improving our healthcare system and access to life-saving drugs, or his work with regard to climate change or reviving our semiconductor industry. Those will go down as tremendous accomplishments," he added.

He called Kamala Harris a "formidable contender" for the Democratic presidential nomination. He said that the decision regarding the presidential nominee would be taken in a convention set to take place in Chicago.

Krishnamoorthi said, "He's passing the torch to a new generation of leaders. He endorsed Kamala Harris. Kamala Harris will be a formidable-contender for the nomination, the Democratic nomination for the presidency. And the most interesting thing is that everything will be decided by the convention, which is going to happen here in Chicago. One of the most, perhaps one of the most interesting and most widely watched conventions, perhaps in modern history, I'm sure. So I hope everybody comes to Chicago for the convention and I look forward to seeing everybody on the campaign trail."

His statement comes after Biden announced his decision to not seek re-election and endorsed Harris as the presidential nominee for the Democratic Party.

In a letter posted on X, Biden stated, "And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term. I will speak to the Nation later this week in more detail about my decision."

The drumbeat of calls for Biden to step aside had been sounding for weeks, ever since his disastrous debate performance against Republican candidate and former president Donald Trump on June 27. In that debate, Biden appeared frail and confused, stumbling through sentences and trailing off mid-sentence.

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