Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told an audience in New York on Monday, June 15, that President Joe Biden made a “terrible mistake” by seeking reelection in 2024—arguing the decision damaged his legacy and left Democrats without a chance to mount a c
When Hillary Clinton sat down on Monday, June 15, in New York City at 92nd Street Y with New Yorker editor David Remnick, she didn’t speak in careful generalities about the 2024 campaign. She delivered her sharpest critique yet of why Joe Biden chose to run again.
Clinton said Biden made a “terrible mistake”—for himself, his legacy, and “for the country”—when he sought reelection in 2024. The former secretary of state argued that. had Biden stuck with what many Democrats believed was an intention to serve only one term and announced earlier that he would step aside. the party could have held a competitive primary to choose a new nominee.
“If he had done it earlier,” Clinton said, the party wouldn’t have been forced to scramble after the June debate, a moment that later became a turning point for the campaign.
Clinton said a different Democrat could have beaten Trump, though she acknowledged no one can know for certain what would have happened.
“Very sadly, I believe whoever emerged from that contest, whether it was the vice president or a governor or a senator or anybody else, would have beaten Donald Trump,” Clinton said. “So I think it was a terrible miscalculation on the part of President Biden.”
Her argument landed with particular force on what she described as the party’s narrowing options once Biden decided to stay in the race—and then delayed stepping aside.
“Once he didn’t move and did not admit that he had said he was going to step aside, and then decided not to, and held on for as long as he did, we were in a terrible dilemma,” Clinton said.
The campaign’s descent into crisis centered on Biden’s June 2024 debate against Donald Trump. Clinton’s criticism ties directly to the fallout from that night—when Biden struggled to complete thoughts and respond effectively to Trump’s attacks. prompting widespread concern among Democrats about his age and mental fitness.
Her remarks also echoed concerns raised inside Biden’s family. Former first lady Jill Biden recently told CBS News she feared her husband was suffering a stroke while watching the debate.
“I don’t know what happened,” Jill Biden said. “As I watched it, I thought, ‘Oh, my God, he’s having a stroke.’”
After weeks of pressure from Democratic leaders following the debate, Biden ended his reelection campaign in July 2024. In announcing his withdrawal. Biden said it was in the best interest of both the Democratic Party and the country for him to step aside and focus on completing his term. He quickly endorsed then-Vice President Kamala Harris. who went on to secure the Democratic nomination but lost the general election to Trump.
Clinton later assessed the obstacles Harris faced after inheriting the nomination with only months remaining before Election Day.
“I think that was definitely a factor,” Clinton said of the shortened campaign timeline.
She also pointed to a separate challenge: the difficulty of distinguishing herself from the administration she served in while running as the sitting vice president.
The comments triggered immediate pushback from the White House.
In response to Clinton’s remarks, Biden spokesperson T.J. Ducklo said the former president has no comment. When questioned by NBC News. White House spokesperson Davis Ingle dismissed Clinton’s suggestion that another Democrat would have defeated Trump. calling her “a whiny loser who no one wants to hear from.”.
The White House was contacted for comment by June 17, but there was no response.
Taken together. Clinton’s account pins the campaign’s outcome on one decision point—Biden’s choice to run and the later refusal to step aside in time—while placing the debate fallout and the compressed timeline as the chain of events that left Democrats with fewer options. The argument hinges on counterfactuals, but Clinton presented it with certainty about the political consequences she believes followed.
At the heart of the moment was what Clinton portrayed as preventable damage: a candidate, a party, and a legacy all affected by timing—timing she says robbed Democrats of the chance to choose a new nominee through a competitive primary before the race narrowed.
Hillary Clinton Joe Biden Kamala Harris 2024 election Donald Trump 92nd Street Y debate Democratic primary campaign withdrawal Jill Biden White House response T.J. Ducklo Davis Ingle