Jill Biden Told Joe 'You Make This Decision Yourself' When He Asked Her If He Should Drop Out of 2024 Election

Former First Lady Dr. Jill Biden characterized former President Joe Biden’s decision to drop out of the 2024 presidential race as "heroic" because "he gave up everything."

During an interview broadcast on "The Jamie Kern Lima Show" on Wednesday, August 26, the former FLOTUS shared intimate details about her husband's historic exit from the campaign.

The 75-year-old college English professor stated that when Joe asked her what he should do amid intense pressure from the party, she refused to choose for him.

“And I said, ‘No.’ I said, ‘You make this decision yourself.’ I said, ‘Whatever decision is made, you have to be able to live with it the rest of your life.’ And I said, ‘I am not gonna weigh in for or against.’ And I kept true to that,” she shared.

She recalled going to bed the night he announced his withdrawal. When she asked how he was doing, he held her hand and admitted, "Jilly, I had no choice.”

Jill said her husband “saw the direction that things were going,” adding that he was aware of calls within the Democratic Party for him to retire following his disastrous debate with Donald Trump.

“I thought what he did was heroic,” she said. “I mean, he gave up everything.”

She continued, “It was his decision. I think people just put whatever twist on it that they want, and mostly it’s negative because it’s just human nature.”

She noted that Joe initially intended to serve only one term. However, following the successful 2022 midterm elections, his advisers and party members heavily pressured him to run for a second term.

“Everybody was coming to Joe and to me and saying, ‘He’s got to keep going. He’s got to keep going. He started to do so many things. We’ve got to persevere. We’ve got to move on. We’ve got to build on what we’ve already done,” she said.

Pushing back against negative commentary, she expressed hope that history will remember him as a hero who stepped aside because he genuinely believed in listening to the American people.

At the time he was drafting his exit speech, she noted the ultimate irony: he was being pushed out over concerns about his capabilities while simultaneously working successfully to negotiate the high-stakes release of detained American journalist Evan Gershkovich.

“And I thought... Look at the irony of this,” she stated. “He’s resigning from office because people don’t feel he can do the job. At the same moment, he’s arranging for the release of a hostage. He’s doing the job so well that he’s getting this hostage released.”

Jill added that she was ultimately “really proud” of Joe, adding, “I knew how hard it would be, but he did it.”