Biden urges Americans to come together and vows peaceful transition

ITV News Correspondent Robert Moore reports from the US following Biden’s speech in the Rose Garden
President Joe Biden said the American people deserve a “peaceful and orderly” transition following president-elect Donald Trump’s US election win.
Biden hailed “a historic presidency” and said that while the Democrats “lost this battle, the America of your dreams is calling for you to get back up”.
Walking out to the cheers of those in attendance, Biden paid tribute to Vice President Kamala Harris’ “true character” following her election loss.
He said: “She ran an inspiring campaign and everyone got to see something that I learned early on to respect so much, her character. She has a backbone like a ramrod and she’s got a great character, true character.”
Speaking in the Rose Garden at the White House he said that defeat does not mean we are defeated, “America endures” and “we’re going to be okay, but we need to stay engaged”.
Trump’s momentous comeback after his loss to Joe Biden four years ago comes after defying two assassination attempts, two presidential impeachments, his criminal conviction and many other criminal charges.
It also follows his attempt to overturn the 2020 election to stay in office.
The president took the opportunity to emphasise the “integrity of the American electoral system”, and that it “is honest, it is fair and it is transparent – it can be trusted, win or lose”.
Trump had repeatedly questioned the system after his loss in 2020, and made claims that the Democrats had rigged the 2024 election – resulting in threats made against election workers.
Biden said: “We can restore the respect for all our election workers who busted their necks, took risks at the outset. We should thank them, thank them for staffing voting sites, counting the votes, protecting the very integrity of the election.”
During the address Biden praised his administration for its accomplishments, suggesting that with more time, America would have felt the changes made during his time in the Oval Office more.
Watch President Joe Biden’s first address since Trump was declared the winner of the US election
He said over a trillion dollars of infrastructure work was done under his administration, which will change the lives of people in rural communities and communities that are in “real difficulty.”
The Trump administration is expected to upend most of the policies of outgoing President Biden.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, a fierce critic of Trump, has made calls for a special session to safeguard his state’s progressive policies on climate change, reproductive rights and immigration ahead of the president-elect coming to power in January 2025.
It features as part of growing conversations among Democrats to protect policies that could be upended by Trump.
One of the states that was still waiting to be called, Maine, was projected as a Harris win on Thursday – something that will do little to dispel Democrat feeling that this has been a wipeout at the ballot box.
Angela Rayner spoke to US Vice President-elect JD Vance, a day after he won election to the White House as Donald Trump’s running mate.
The deputy prime minister posted on X that it was “good to speak” to the Ohio senator in the latest sign of the UK government trying to build relations with the incoming US administration.
She said: “Good to speak to US Vice President-elect @JDVance as UK Deputy Prime Minister.
“We spoke about our plans for the future and how, working together, we build on the special relationship between our great countries.”
It comes after Sir Keir Starmer spoke to Trump on Wednesday after his election win.
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