No matter how you feel about Joe Biden, he deserves our thanks | Opinion

No matter how you feel about President Joe Biden — whether you love him, hate him, wanted him to stay in the race — he deserves our thanks.

He has served our country nearly his whole career, and near the end of it, he made a bigger sacrifice than many of us could imagine.

Could he have recognized the inevitable toll his age was taking on the campaign and dropped out the race sooner? Of course.

But he will be remembered for the many accomplishments of his time as president, and for the selflessness he showed when it was needed most.

Despite what the opposing side will say, we are safer, stronger and more economically productive than we were four years ago.

Biden brought the country out of COVID. He passed a huge bipartisan Infrastructure law that has sent $1 trillion dollars to long-ignored bridges, roads and construction sites. He worked on laws to lower drug prices and expand healthcare to more Americans.

When Kentucky faced two of its greatest natural disasters (the tragic tornadoes in Western Kentucky and the equally horrific floods in Eastern Kentucky), Biden appeared with federal relief dollars following close behind.

He rejoined the Paris climate accords, dealing head one with an existential crisis that we in this state are already facing. He protected America’s interests abroad, particularly in sending aid to Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s invasion.

Biden has lost much along the way: His first wife and daughter, and later a son, Beau, who died of brain cancer that many believe was associated with exposure of toxic chemicals in burn pits overseas. In 2022, Biden signed legislation that extended health benefits veterans exposed in places like Iraq.

Now, he has lost a second term that he badly wanted. However late, the 81-year-old president recognized the concerns of the American public about his age were too numerous to overcome.

He has pledged to fulfill the last five months of his term, and is correct to do so. But five months is very different from four more years, and he is correct to recognize that his age and infirmities were not going to improve.

The upcoming four months will be chaotic on many fronts, and they could prove especially interesting if Gov. Andy Beshear is somehow woven into the mix. Partisan rancor will spark everywhere.

But for right now, we should agree that Biden has spent a lifetime working on our behalf.

For the time that remains in office, we should simply say, “Thank you for your service.”

From The Opinion Team

President Joe Biden withdrew Sunday from the 2024 presidential race. Read more on this developing news event, from our Opinion team:

→Biden’s withdrawal solves one of Dems’ many problems. But it creates one, too

→With Biden out, Michelle Obama would be Donald Trump’s worst self-inflicted nightmare

→Once again, Joe Biden is giving America its best chance to defeat Donald Trump