Biden says ‘Putin’s war has failed’, vows to continue support for Ukraine
Joe Biden went on to address one of the United States and its allies’ top national security priorities: Ukraine and its defense against the Russian invasion.
“The good news is Putin’s war has failed at his core aim,” Biden said.
He then promised to continue to support Kyiv until it achieves a “durable peace”:
He set out to destroy Ukraine, but Ukraine is still free. He set out the weaken Nato, but Nato is bigger, stronger, more united than ever before, with two new members, Finland and Sweden, but we cannot let up. The world now has another choice to make. Will we sustain our support to help Ukraine win this war, to preserve its freedom, or walk away and let aggression be renewed and a nation be destroyed.
I know my answer. We cannot grow weary. We cannot look away and we will not let up on our support for Ukraine, not until Ukraine wins a just and durable peace in the UN charter.
Key events
The day so far
We will soon hear from Donald Trump, who’s in Savannah, Georgia, for a speech billed as discussing his policies on manufacturing and taxation. The big question is whether the former president will remain on topic. Kamala Harris, meanwhile, spoke to a public radio station in battleground state Wisconsin, where the vice-president said she would support repealing the filibuster in the Senate to allow passage of a law restoring the constitutional right to abortion once guaranteed by Roe v Wade. And at the United Nations in New York, Joe Biden gave his final address as president to the general assembly, urging the world to defend Ukraine while calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and an end to the weapons shipments fueling the war in Sudan.
Here’s what else is happening today:
No clear leader in presidential race, new poll finds
A CNN poll conducted by SSRS and released a few minutes ago finds that the race between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump is deadlocked nationally.
The survey of registered voters found Harris is supported by 48%, and Trump by 47% – findings that lie within its margin of error. Other polls have found a tied race nationwide, though some have found the vice-president with the lead.
If there are any unique insights from the network’s survey, it may be voters’ reasons for backing their candidate of choice. From CNN:
Both Harris and Trump hold positive support from the majority of their backers – 72% of Trump’s supporters say their choice is more for him than against Harris, while 60% of Harris’ supporters say their choice is more for her than against him.
That’s a major shift in voters’ attitudes toward the race compared with earlier this summer. In the last national CNN poll in July, shortly after President Joe Biden ended his campaign for president and Harris threw her hat into the ring for the Democratic nomination, Harris’ backers were evenly divided between affirmative support for her and those driven by anti-Trump sentiment. And Biden’s supporters in earlier polls said they were largely expressing opposition to Trump with their choice.
Harris backs removing filibuster to restore Roe v Wade
In an interview with Wisconsin Public Radio today, Kamala Harris said she would support repealing the filibuster in the Senate in order to pass legislation restoring the constitutional right to abortion that Roe v Wade protected prior to its overturning two years ago.
“I’ve been very clear. I think we should eliminate the filibuster for Roe … 51 votes would be what we actually need to actually put back in law the protections for reproductive freedom, and for the ability of every person and every woman to make decisions about their own body and not have their government tell them what to do,” Harris said.
While legislation can pass with a simple majority in the House of Representatives, the Senate’s filibuster requires most legislation to receive 60 votes to pass. Repealing it would give Democrats the opportunity to enact a law restoring abortion rights, but they would also need to keep their control of the chamber to do that.
Here’s more on the obstacles the Democrats face to keeping their Senate majority:
In his final address to the United Nations as president, and one of his last major speeches before departing the White House in January, Joe Biden made the case for his foreign policy, and reflected on his decision not to seek a second term. Here’s a look back at Biden’s speech, from the Guardian’s Andrew Roth:
Joe Biden has sought to defend his foreign policy achievements on the world stage with an address to the United Nations general assembly against a backdrop of three brutal, intractable wars that have stymied world diplomats seeking an end to the bloodshed.
Addressing the assembly hall in New York on Tuesday, Biden took on the mantle of elder statesman as he alternated between a message of hope and a full-throated defense of his record on foreign policy.
Without giving a clear vision of how the wars in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan might end, he drew on his five decades in government service to exhort leaders to serve their people and find ways to make peace.
“I’ve seen a remarkable sweep of history,” he said. “Things can get better, we should never forget that, I’ve seen that throughout my career.”
Biden first turned his attention to Ukraine, where he once again condemned Vladimir Putin’s 2022 full-scale invasion and called for continued support for Kyiv.
“We cannot grow weary,” he said, as the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, looked on. “We cannot look away. We will not let up on our support for Ukraine. Not until Ukraine wins a just and durable peace.”
Patrick Wintour
Speaking at the United Nations right after Joe Biden was Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who had strong words for the United States over its support for Israel.
He accused America of continuing to arm Israel so it can continue its “massacre”, when in front of the stage it pretends to look for a ceasefire.
He asked Washington, a fellow Nato member, “How long are you going to be able to carry the shame of witnessing this massacre?”, adding that what has happened in Gaza is a great moral collapse. “Countries that have a say over Israel are openly complicit in this massacre,” Erdoğan said.
Minutes after Joe Biden finished addressing the UN general assembly, Donald Trump’s campaign released a statement warning, in apocalyptic terms, of the consequences of electing Kamala Harris.
“Under President Donald J Trump, Iran was weak, ISIS was eliminated, Hamas was cut off, historic peace was descending on the Middle East, Russia was under control and there hadn’t been a US service member killed in Afghanistan in 18 months,” the lengthy email read.
“World War III is a certainty in a Kamala Harris presidency. President Trump, meanwhile, will restore stability and peace – and it will be peace through strength.”
The Associated Press has previously fact-checked Trump’s statement regarding Afghanistan, and determined it was false.
As he wrapped up his address, Joe Biden reflected on his decision not to seek a second term in office.
“This summer, I faced a decision: whether to seek a second term as president. It was a difficult decision. Being president has been the honor of my life. There’s so much more I want to get done. As much as I love the job, I love my country more. I decided, after 50 years of public service, it’s time for a new generation of leadership to take my nation forward,” Biden said.
“My fellow leaders, let us never forget, some things are more important than staying in power. It’s your people,” the president said to applause. “It’s your people that matter the most.”
Biden calls for world ‘to stop arming the generals’ in Sudan
Joe Biden also commented briefly on the civil war in Sudan, which has created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises but received comparably less attention from foreign governments and the public.
The US president called for countries to stop arming the warring parties, though did not name specific nations. Reports have emerged that the United Arab Emirates has provided a steady stream of weapons to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, which has been battling the Sudanese army in the conflict that began in April 2023.
“Gaza is not the only conflict that deserves our outrage. In Sudan, a bloody civil war unleashed one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Eight million, eight million on the brink of famine, hundreds of thousands already there,” Biden said.
He continued:
The United States has led the world in providing humanitarian aid to Sudan, and with our partners who have led diplomatic talks to try to silence the guns and avert a wider famine. The world needs to stop arming the generals, to speak with one voice and tell them, stop tearing your country apart, stop blocking aid to the Sudanese people, end this war now.
Here’s the latest on the conflict in the country:
Biden says ‘full-scale war is not in anyone’s interest’ amid crisis in Lebanon
Joe Biden then shifted to the Middle East, where he called for a ceasefire deal in the war in Gaza and the release of hostages taken in the October 7 attack.
“Now is the time for the parties to finalize its terms, bring the hostages home and … ease the suffering in Gaza and end this war,” Biden said.
He then shifted to the escalating hostilities in the Middle East, decrying Hezbollah’s rocket attacks and calling for diplomacy:
Since October 7, we’ve also been determined to prevent a wider war than engulfs the entire region. Hezbollah, unprovoked during the October 7 attack, launching rockets in Israel almost a year later, too many on each side of the Israeli-Lebanon border remain displaced.
Full-scale war is not in anyone’s interest. Even if the situation has escalated, a diplomatic solution is still possible. In fact, it remains the only path to lasting security to allow the residents from both countries to return to their homes and the border safely. And that’s … what we’re working tirelessly to achieve.
Here’s the latest on the crisis in Lebanon:
Biden says ‘Putin’s war has failed’, vows to continue support for Ukraine
Joe Biden went on to address one of the United States and its allies’ top national security priorities: Ukraine and its defense against the Russian invasion.
“The good news is Putin’s war has failed at his core aim,” Biden said.
He then promised to continue to support Kyiv until it achieves a “durable peace”:
He set out to destroy Ukraine, but Ukraine is still free. He set out the weaken Nato, but Nato is bigger, stronger, more united than ever before, with two new members, Finland and Sweden, but we cannot let up. The world now has another choice to make. Will we sustain our support to help Ukraine win this war, to preserve its freedom, or walk away and let aggression be renewed and a nation be destroyed.
I know my answer. We cannot grow weary. We cannot look away and we will not let up on our support for Ukraine, not until Ukraine wins a just and durable peace in the UN charter.
Biden began by making a now-familiar joke about his age.
“I’ve seen a remarkable sweep of history. I was first elected to office … in 1972. Now, I know I look like I’m only 40. I know that,” the president said, drawing laughs.
Biden then talked about how he has seen the country change over his decades in Washington, and how enemies have become allies. He pointed to the relationship between the United States and Vietnam, which were at war when he took office, but are now friends:
Last year in Hanoi, I … met with the Vietnamese leadership. We elevated our partnership to the highest level. It’s a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the capacity for reconciliation that today, the United States and Vietnam are partners and friends, and it’s proof that even from the horrors of war, there’s a way forward. Things can get better.
Biden to address UN general assembly
Joe Biden is taking the stage now in New York City, where he’ll address heads of state gathered for the United Nations general assembly.
This will be Biden’s final address to the global body as president. We’ll let you know what he has to say.
Kamala Harris has no public events today, but will be back on the campaign trail tomorrow.
She’ll stump for her candidacy in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, before returning to the White House for her Thursday meeting with Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, alongside Joe Biden.
She will be in Arizona on Friday and in San Francisco on Saturday, then will campaign in Las Vegas on Sunday.
More than 400 economists, experts endorse Harris
Kamala Harris has received the endorsement of more than 400 economists and economic policy experts, who wrote in an open letter that the vice-president “will work relentlessly to build a strong, pro-growth economy for all Americans”.
The group includes former treasury, commerce and labor secretaries; a former vice-chair of the Federal Reserve; and a Nobel laureate, among many others.
Of Donald Trump, the group writes:
Donald Trump’s proposed policies risk reigniting inflation and threaten the United States’ global standing and domestic economic stability. Nonpartisan researchers have predicted that if Donald Trump successfully enacts his agenda, it will lower GDP growth and increase the unemployment rate.
The endorsements of Harris follow similar open letters from a group of more than 100 Republican foreign policy and national security officials, and more than 700 former military and national security officials.
Biden to make final address to UN leaders as Trump campaigns in Georgia on manufacturing, tax policy
Good morning, US politics blog readers. Joe Biden will make one of the final big speeches of his presidency at 10am ET today, when he addresses the UN general assembly in New York. The annual gathering of world leaders is a significant moment for any president, but even more so for Biden, because he’s due to depart the White House in January. His administration has not given many hints of what he might say, but in his speech you can expect him to make the case for his handling of everything from climate change to Israel’s invasion of Gaza, and potentially the escalating crisis in Lebanon.
Donald Trump, meanwhile, will be in Savannah, Georgia, to give a speech at 1pm billed as discussing his policy on taxation and manufacturing. The ex-president’s economic proposals have centered on a combination of tariffs and tax cuts that he argues would lower prices for consumer, after several years of high inflation under Biden. Economists aren’t so sure, and chances are Trump veers away from the subject anyway – he’s known to go off topic throughout his speeches. We’ll be keeping an eye on what both men have to say.
Here’s what else is going on:
Antony Blinken may soon become the latest Biden administration official to be held in contempt. The Republican-led House foreign affairs committee has demanded he testify today, but he has reportedly told them he is busy with the UN general assembly, and when the committee meets beginning at 10.15am, they may vote to sanction him.
A scandal brews in New York City’s suburbs. The New York Times reported yesterday that freshman Republican congressman Anthony D’Esposito gave part-time jobs to both his lover and his fiancee’s daughter, which may be a violation of House ethics rules.
A vote in the House on a short-term funding measure to prevent a government shutdown is expected on Wednesday.
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