New Hampshire Union Leader endorses Biden, first Democrat in more than 100 years
KATE FELDMAN
Joe Biden continues to rack up the “never before” endorsements as the former vice president coasts into what pollsters believe will be a dominant Nov. 3 defeat over President Trump.
The New Hampshire Union Leader, the most widely circulated newspaper in the state, endorsed Biden Sunday, the first time its editorial board has endorsed a Democrat in the paper’s more than 100-year history.
“We were hopeful with Trump’s win that he might change, that the weight and responsibility of the Oval Office might mold a more respectful and presidential man,” the editorial reads. “We have watched with the rest of the world as the mantle of the presidency has done very little to change Trump while the country and world have changed significantly.”
The New Hampshire Union Leader endorsed Joe Biden Sunday.
The New Hampshire Union Leader endorsed Joe Biden Sunday. (ANGELA WEISS/)
Citing the exploding national debt and Trump’s “ignorance” about the deadly coronavirus pandemic, the Union Leader countered Biden as “a caring, compassionate and professional public servant.”
“Joe Biden may not be the president we want, but in 2020 he is the president we desperately need," the editorial reads. "He will be a president to bring people together and right the ship of state.”
Following a decades-long political career, former Vice President Joe Biden became the Democratic presidential nominee in June 2020 and will accept the party’s nomination during the 2020 Democratic National Convention. Leading up to the 2020 election, take a look back at Biden's political career, from the Senate to the White House.
Joe Biden moved to Delaware as a child where he would later go on to obtain a degree in history and political science at the University of Delaware. It was there he met his first wife Neilia Hunter (c), who encouraged him to continue into law school. By 1970, Biden was an active member of the Democratic Party. He stands here with his two sons (r) Joseph and Robert during the Democratic state convention in the summer of 1972.
In 1972, Biden decided to run for the U.S. State Senate position in Delaware and ended up coming out victorious. However, a week before Christmas in 1972, Biden's wife Neilia and his three children were involved in a car accident that killed his wife and daughter Naomi. Despite the tragedy, Biden continued to honor his commitment to represent the people of Delaware in the Senate. Seen here, he was sworn in as the U.S. Senator from Delaware by his son Beau's hospital bedside on Jan. 5, 1973.
Joe Biden served as senator from 1973 to 2009, conquering many obstacles along the way. Here, Biden speaks at a Washington press conference in Oct. 1979, backing up the importance of the SALT II treaty to American security. By this time, Biden was also a chairman of the Foreign Subcommittee on Europe Affairs.
During his 15th year in the Senate, Biden sought the Democratic presidential nomination, an endeavor which he formally declared at the Wilmington train station on June 9, 1987. The campaign was derailed when Biden was accused of plagiarizing a speech from British politician Neil Kinnock, but the incident soon faded as Biden continued his Senate career.
During Biden's presidential campaign, he was suffering from severe headaches before discovering that he had two life-threatening brain aneurysms. Biden spent nearly seven months in and out of surgery before finally returning to office in Sept. 1988. Here, Biden is warmly welcomed back by his staff during a press conference at his Capitol Hill office.
Over his 35-year career in Washington, Biden has developed a reputation as a collegial figure even when he's competitive. Someone who can spin flowery praise one moment and biting fulmination the next. Here, Biden points angrily at Clarence Thomas during comments at the end of hearings on Thomas' 1991 nomination to the Supreme Court on Capitol Hill.
Biden has also developed significant foreign policy bona fides during his long tenure on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In this April 9, 1993 photo, Biden stands in front of a Danish armored personnel carrier at the UN-controlled Sarajevo Airport, making a statement about his trip to the besieged Bosnian capital.
Biden has continued to play a pivotal role in U.S. foreign policy, meeting with foreign leaders like South Korean President Kim Dae-jung (r), among others. Biden, along with three other U.S. senators, arrived in South Korea on Aug. 11, 2001, to discuss security concerns, including North Korea's long-range missile program with the country's top leaders.
After establishing himself as one of Washington's most prominent lawmakers, Biden decided to once again run for the U.S. presidency in 2007. Despite his popularity in the Senate, Biden's campaign failed to generate much attention and he decided to drop out after receiving less than one percent of the vote in the Iowa caucuses. Here, Biden speaks to law students at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa on April 3, 2007.
Several months after dropping out of the race, President Barack Obama selected Joe Biden as his vice presidential running mate. Here, Obama formally introduces Biden as his running mate along with their wives at an event at the Old State Capitol on Aug. 23, 2008. Biden and Obama worked together to secure the presidential spot, defeating Senator John McCain and Sarah Palin on Nov. 2, 2008.
The duo decided to run for re-election in 2012 against challenger Mitt Romney and his vice presidential running mate Paul Ryan. Once again, Biden and Obama came out victorious, earning a second term as president and vice president. Here, the two share a moment on stage at their election night party on Nov. 7, 2012.
Former Vice President Joe Biden officially announced on April 25, 2019, via a YouTube video, that he is running for the White House in the 2020 election. Biden is photographed during his first campaign event as a candidate for U.S. President at Teamsters Local 249 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on April 29, 2019.
Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign rally at Renaissance High School on Monday, March 9, 2020, in Detroit, Mich. On March 13, the Democratic presidential nomination contest winnowed to a two-person race; Biden lead over Sen. Bernie Sanders in the delegate count.
In this screengrab taken from Joe Biden's campaign website, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) endorses Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden during a live streaming broadcast on April 13, 2020. Sanders said, "Today, I am asking all Americans, I'm asking every Democrat, I'm asking every Independent, I'm asking a lot of Republicans to come together in this campaign to support your candidacy."
In this screengrab, former U.S. President Barack Obama endorses Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden during a video released on April 14, 2020.
Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden and his running mate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., arrive to speak at a news conference at Alexis Dupont High School in Wilmington, Del. on Aug. 12, 2020. Harris, who was previously running to become the nominee, became Biden's VP choice on Aug. 11, 2020.
Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during a news conference at the Hotel DuPont in Wilmington, Del. on Aug. 13, 2020.
After more than a century of Republican endorsements, the Union Leader pulled for Libertarian Gary Johnson in the 2016 election. The editorial board endorsed Amy Klobuchar in the 2020 primary.
The 2020 general election has drawn other firsts from papers including the New England Journal of Medicine, USA Today, Scientific American and Puerto Rican paper El Nuevo Día.
