Former US President Barack Obama thanked Joe Biden for “a lifetime of service to the American people” following the Democrat’s first address from the Oval Office after pulling out of the 2024 presidential race. In a post on the microblogging site X, Obama wrote, “The sacred cause of this country is larger than any one of us.”

“Joe Biden has stayed true to these words again and again over a lifetime of service to the American people. Thank you, @POTUS,” Obama wrote in his post on X.

However, he did not make it clear whether he supported Biden’s decision to endorse Vice-President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee against Republican candidate Donald Trump.

Earlier on Wednesday, 81-year-old Joe Biden addressed the United States for the first time after stepping down from the Presidential race and said that he decided that the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation.

“I’ve decided the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation. That’s the best way to unite our nation. I there is a time and a place for long years of experience in public life, but there’s also a time and a place for new voices, fresh voices, yes, younger voices, and that time and place is now,” Biden said in his Oval Office address to the nation.

The much anticipated address to the nation came three days after he announced that he was withdrawing from the presidential race and endorsing his deputy Kamala Harris as the nominee for the Democratic Party.

“I’ve made it clear that I believe America is at an inflection point, one of those rare moments in history when the decisions we make now will determine our fate of our nation and the world for decades to come,” he said from the Oval Office.

Earlier, Biden announced his decision to quit the presidential race, saying he was doing so in the best interest of his party and the country. He said he would now solely focus on fulfilling his duties as President and Commander-in-Chief for the remainder of his term which ends early next year.