Biden urges Nebraska Democrats as the underdog in his return to the political stage in Omaha | World news

It was an exhilarating return to the political scene for the former president, whose party’s efforts to remain in the White House were rebuffed just over a year ago. Biden called for a political comeback, but not for himself, but for a fight-hungry public.

“You know what it feels like to be outnumbered,” he told Democrats in Nebraska, where Republicans have won the state in every presidential election since 1968. “But in every election, you put up yard signs and make your voices heard. The country needs you badly.”

It was the kind of pep talk that sells in a place where Democrats are losing statewide, but they have run winning races for the Omaha-area 2nd District electoral vote, elected a Democratic mayor for the first time since 2009, and are feeling energetic about capturing the 2nd District seat in 2026.

Biden lavished encouragement, but repeatedly returned to his point about the high points he achieved during his single term, successfully curbing Covid-19 and starting an economic recovery from the pandemic.

He did not mention the difficulties he faced last year, nor the year of debate that Democrats had about how they lost the presidency to Republican Donald Trump.

In the summer of 2024, Biden waited more than three weeks after his disastrous performance in the June debate with Trump, causing panic among Democrats, before announcing in July that he would not seek another term, then endorsing then-Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor on the ticket.

Harris wrote in a book published last September that she and others in Biden’s orbit should have been more aggressive in encouraging him to consider stepping down sooner.

The closest Biden came to acknowledging the difficult decision was an offhand joke.

“I have this dubious distinction. I’m the youngest man ever elected to the United States Senate, and I’m the oldest fucking president,” he said with a joking sigh.

Although Biden’s delivery was calm but upbeat, he sometimes slurred his words and was at times so quiet that he was inaudible from the amplified podium. However, he will return with fiery attacks on the Trump administration and calls for action.

“What we have to do is fix our mistakes, and that’s what we started doing on Tuesday,” he shouted.

Tuesday’s victories, a boon for Democrats across the country, were a timely boost for Biden.

But he also benefited from an atmosphere of respect.

Earlier in the program, he remained seated but cheered when the audience stood up after Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, also a guest at the fundraiser, praised him “for a lifetime of service to our country.”

“He was a president who ruled not for red states, nor for blue states, but for the entire United States,” Beshear said.

Throughout Biden’s 30-minute remarks, the crowd rose and cheered. He returned to well-worn election campaign themes promoting the middle class, equality, and responsibility for the nation as an example to other nations.

He called them principles “from which we have never strayed.” “We won’t walk away from them now,” he said, trying to punctuate him by raising his voice.

This is Biden’s second public appearance in the past week, and the second since he completed a round of radiation treatment in October for an aggressive type of prostate cancer he was diagnosed with after leaving office. He didn’t say anything about his health, and when he mentioned cancer it wasn’t about his health. It was about his late son Beau, who died in 2015.

This was Biden’s first purely political appearance since Labor Day 2024, when he appeared with Harris at a labor event in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a full two months before the November 5, 2024 election.

If his decision-making on the 2024 race was in question among the crowd on Friday, it seemed like a distant memory when he finished his speech.

“Thank you, Joe! Thank you, Joe!” They chatted as he left the stage.