US government employees fear presidential elections uncertainty
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Politico cites US sources saying that employees of a governmental department have discussed feeling worried during the debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.
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President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris greet the press at the White House for July 4 celebrations in 2024 (AFP)
Many US federal workers are experiencing heightened anxiety due to the uncertainty surrounding the November presidential elections, as reported by Politico. This rose especially after President Joe Biden announced he would not be running, leaving the Democrats without an official candidate.
According to the newspaper, two current and one former employee of the US Department of Agriculture revealed that during the debate between former President Trump and Biden, department employees exchanged messages expressing panic about Biden and his administration's future. The report added that some employees are already openly expressing their readiness to leave their positions without waiting for the election results.
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The newspaper reported that civil servants are less worried about Biden's ability to win the election and more concerned about the possibility of Trump returning to power and the implications of a new Trump administration.
"The first rendition of the Trump administration was really, really difficult, and we saw a mass exodus of employees retiring," a US Park Service employee said, adding that "If we do have an administration shift, other employees will also reconsider their positions and move to the private sector."
'Chief for Crooked Joe'
Earlier on Sunday, Biden declared that he would be stepping down from the presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic Party's nominee for the presidency.
Biden's poor performance in the first campaign debate against Trump last month heightened worries about his cognitive abilities. This led many Senior Democrats and donors to urge him to withdraw from the race, with funders even freezing their donations.
Harris lauded President Joe Biden's "patriotic" decision not to seek reelection on Sunday and pledged to secure the Democratic nomination and defeat Trump.
"I am honored to have the president's endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination. I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party - and unite our nation - to defeat Donald Trump," she said.
Read more: 'Support Kamala Harris, America's future depends on It,' Clintons say
Trump's campaign team quickly responded to Biden's endorsement of Harris, sharply criticizing her potential leadership.
"Harris will be even worse for the people of our nation than Joe Biden. Harris has been the Enabler in Chief for Crooked Joe this entire time. They own each other's records, and there is no distance between the two," the campaign said in a statement.
The Republican camp was swift to denounce both Harris and Biden, with House Speaker Mike Johnson, for example, stressing that Biden must resign as President "immediately".
"If Joe Biden is not fit to run for president, he is not fit to serve as president. He must resign the office immediately. November 5 cannot arrive soon enough," said Johnson.
