Biden to campaign for VP Harris, justifies decision to opt out of prez race

US President Joe Biden has described his decision to drop out of the presidential race as "the right thing to do" and said he would campaign with his deputy Kamala Harris, whom he has endorsed as the Democratic Party's new nominee, for the November general elections.

In a telephonic address on Monday to his former campaign team, which has now been rechristened Harris Campaign, Biden urged the members to "embrace" Vice President Harris (59) while asserting that the name of the campaign has changed but the mission remains the same -- defeating Donald Trump.

Biden's decision to nominate Harris follows weeks of intense pressure from fellow Democrats after his disastrous presidential debate performance against his Republican rival and former US President Donald Trump last month.

The 82-year-old US president, who is in self-isolation after testing positive for COVID-19, called the campaign headquarters on Monday moments before Harris made the maiden address to the team.

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