#NNPA BlackPress
BREAKING NEWS: President Joe Biden Announces He Will Not Seek Re-Election
NNPA NEWSWIRE — President Biden, who faced intense scrutiny following a disastrous debate performance last month, made the announcement in a letter posted on his X account. “And while it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” he wrote.
The post BREAKING NEWS: President Joe Biden Announces He Will Not Seek Re-Election first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia
In a stunning turn of events, President Joe Biden has announced that he will not seek re-election, bowing to mounting pressure from within his own party. This decision comes after a growing number of Democratic Party members voiced concerns that Biden’s candidacy was jeopardizing their chances of keeping the twice-impeached former President Donald Trump out of the White House.
President Biden, who faced intense scrutiny following a disastrous debate performance last month, made the announcement in a letter posted on his X account. “And while it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” he wrote.
Biden assured the nation that he would continue to serve with dedication until the end of his current term. He also indicated that he would provide further details about his decision in a forthcoming address to the nation later this week.
This unexpected announcement has already sent shockwaves through the political landscape, setting the stage for a highly contentious primary season as the Democratic Party scrambles to find a new standard-bearer. Biden has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him as the Democratic presidential nominee in this note to other Democrats from his account on X: “My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term. My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”
Immediately, Washington State Democratic Chair Shasti Conrad has called on the party to nominate Vice President Kamala Harris:
“President Biden has led our nation with courage and historic success. He is a true patriot who ensured the Democratic Party denied Donald Trump a second term and has accomplished more in one term than many presidents have accomplished in two. He kept his promises to create good-paying jobs, guide our nation out of the pandemic, and implemented the largest effort to combat climate change in our nation’s history. He has been an incredible ally supporting our first Black president and choosing to partner with our first Black and Asian woman vice president. He also promised to be a transitional leader to the generations that will come after. I support his decision to make good on that promise.
“Today, I call on his delegates to support Vice President Kamala Harris to lead our Party and our country. As the leader and steward of the Washington State Democratic Party, I have listened to the overwhelming consensus of Democrats in Washington State who are excited to support Vice President Harris as our standard bearer.
“Vice President Kamala Harris has spent the last four years championing and pushing President Biden’s successful agenda. She knows this work is heart-led work, and her effective advancement of the Biden-Harris Administration’s priorities positions her as the only viable alternative to President Biden at the top of the Democratic ticket. Her lived experience as a Black and Asian American woman has inspired millions of people, myself included, to see ourselves occupying the highest positions of power and leadership. We are a big-tent party and Vice President Harris is the only national figure capable of unifying the full diversity of our Party to lead us to victory in November.
“But let me be clear, as a Party and as an American people, we must offer our full-throated support for Vice President Harris. We cannot and will not survive another media cycle of hand-wringing about whether the country will accept a woman as our president. We must be ready to surround her with a wall of support and be ready to stand against the racism and sexism that we know will come. As a Party, we must not perpetuate any of the bigoted and wrong sentiments that we know will come from the Trump-owned Republican Party.
“As the first South Asian woman to lead a Democratic Party organization in the entire country and the first woman of color to lead the Washington State Democrats, I know that there will undoubtedly be people from within our own party who will question Vice President Harris’ ability to win and to lead. But I am confident that she will not only lead but will exceed all expectations. President Biden chose her to be by his side while the Biden-Harris Administration enacted the most progressive accomplishments of any Administration in my lifetime, and I look forward to fully supporting Vice President Kamala Harris to lead us and this nation as our next President.
“President Biden put the interests of the nation and our party above any other concern and threw his full support behind Vice President Harris to lead us to victory in November. This is a heart-wrenching decision, and I hold the deepest respect and admiration for President Biden. Given the existential threat to our democracy and the soul of our nation posed by the Trump-Vance ticket’s xenophobic and hateful Project 2025, the Democratic Party must put forward the best candidate for victory in November. That candidate is Vice President Kamala Harris.”
The post BREAKING NEWS: President Joe Biden Announces He Will Not Seek Re-Election first appeared on BlackPressUSA.
#NNPA BlackPress
Trump Set to Sign Largest Cut to Medicaid After a Marathon Protest Speech by Leader Jeffries
BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — The bill also represents the biggest cut in Medicare in history and is a threat to the health care coverage of over 15 million people. The spending in Trump’s signature legislation also opens the door to a second era of over-incarceration in the U.S.

By Lauren Burke
By a vote of 218 to 214, the GOP-controlled U.S. House passed President Trump’s massive budget and spending bill that will add $3.5 trillion to the national debt, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The bill also represents the biggest cut in Medicare in history and is a threat to the health care coverage of over 15 million people. The spending in Trump’s signature legislation also opens the door to a second era of over-incarceration in the U.S. With $175 billion allocated in spending for immigration enforcement, the money for more police officers eclipsed the 2026 budget for the U.S. Marines, which is $57 billion. Almost all of the policy focus from the Trump Administration has focused on deporting immigrants of color from Mexico and Haiti.
The vote occurred as members were pressed to complete their work before the arbitrary deadline of the July 4 holiday set by President Trump. It also occurred after Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries took the House floor for over 8 hours in protest. Leader Jeffries broke the record in the U.S. House for the longest floor speech in history on the House floor. The Senate passed the bill days before and was tied at 50-50, with Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski saying that, “my hope is that the House is gonna look at this and recognize that we’re not there yet.” There were no changes made to the Senate bill by the House. A series of overnight phone calls to Republicans voting against, not changes, was what won over enough Republicans to pass the legislation, even though it adds trillions to the debt. The Trump spending bill also cuts money to Pell grants.
“The Big Ugly Bill steals food out of the hands of starving children, steals medicine from the cabinets of cancer patients, and equips ICE with more funding and more weapons of war than the United States Marine Corps. Is there any question of who those agents will be going to war for, or who they will be going to war against? Beyond these sadistic provisions, Republicans just voted nearly unanimously to close urban and rural hospitals, cripple the child tax credit, and to top it all off, add $3.3 trillion to the ticking time bomb that is the federal deficit – all from a party that embarrassingly pretends to stand for fiscal responsibility and lowering costs,” wrote Congressional Black Caucus Chairwoman Yvette Clarke (D-NY) in a statement on July 3.
“The Congressional Budget Office predicts that 17 million people will lose their health insurance, including over 322,000 Virginians. It will make college less affordable. Three million people will lose access to food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). And up to 16 million students could lose access to free school meals. The Republican bill does all of this to fund tax breaks for millionaires, billionaires, and corporations,” wrote Education and Workforce Committee ranking member Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) in a statement. The bill’s passage has prompted Democrats to start thinking about 2026 and the next election cycle. With the margins of victory in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate being so narrow, many are convinced that the balance of power and the question of millions being able to enjoy health care come down to only several thousand votes in congressional elections. But currently, Republicans controlled by the MAGA movement control all three branches of government. That reality was never made more stark and more clear than the last seven days of activity in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate.

#NNPA BlackPress
Congressional Black Caucus Challenges Target on Diversity
BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — we found that the explanations offered by the leadership of the Target Corporation fell woefully short of what our communities deserve and of the values of inclusion that Target once touted

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent
Target is grappling with worsening financial and reputational fallout as the national selective buying and public education program launched by the Black Press of America and other national and local leaders continues to erode the retailer’s sales and foot traffic. But a recent meeting that the retailer intended to keep quiet between CEO Brian Cornell and members of the Congressional Black Caucus Diversity Task Force was publicly reported after the Black Press discovered the session, and the CBC later put Target on blast.
“The Congressional Black Caucus met with the leadership of the Target Corporation on Capitol Hill to directly address deep concerns about the impact of the company’s unconscionable decision to end a number of its diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts,” CBC Chair Yvette Clarke stated. “Like many of the coalition leaders and partner organizations that have chosen to boycott their stores across the country, we found that the explanations offered by the leadership of the Target Corporation fell woefully short of what our communities deserve and of the values of inclusion that Target once touted,” Congresswoman emphasized. “Black consumers contribute overwhelmingly to our economy and the Target Corporation’s bottom line. Our communities deserve to shop at businesses that publicly share our values without sacrificing our dignity. It is no longer acceptable to deliver promises to our communities in private without also demonstrating those values publicly.”
Lauren Burke, Capitol Hill correspondent for Black Press of America, was present when Target CEO Cornell and a contingent of Target officials arrived at the U.S. Capitol last month. “It’s always helpful to have meetings like this and get some candid feedback and continue to evolve our thinking,” Cornell told Burke as he exited the meeting. And walked down a long hallway in the Cannon House Office Building. “We look forward to follow-up conversations,” he stated. When asked if the issue of the ongoing boycott was discussed, Cornell’s response was, “That was not a big area of focus — we’re focused on running a great business each and every day. Take care of our teams. Take care of the guests who shop with us and do the right things in our communities.”
A national public education campaign on Target, spearheaded by Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., president and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), the NNPA’s board of directors, and with other national African American leaders, has combined consumer education efforts with a call for selective buying. The NNPA is a trade association that represents the more than 220 African American-owned newspapers and media companies known as the Black Press of America, the voice of 50 million African Americans across the nation. The coalition has requested that Target restore and expand its stated commitment to do business with local community-owned businesses inclusive of the Black Press of America, and to significantly increase investment in Black-owned businesses and media, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU, Black-owned Banks, national Black Church denominations, and grassroots and local organizations committed to improving the quality of life of all Americans, and especially those from underserved communities. According to Target’s latest earnings report, net sales for the first quarter of 2025 fell 2.8 percent to $23.85 billion compared to the same period last year. Comparable store sales dropped 3.8 percent, and in-store foot traffic slid 5.7 percent.
Shares of Target have also struggled under the pressure. The company’s stock traded around $103.85 early Wednesday afternoon, down significantly from roughly $145 before the controversy escalated. Analysts note that Target has lost more than $12 billion in market value since the beginning of the year. “We will continue to inform and to mobilize Black consumers in every state in the United States,” Chavis said. “Target today has a profound opportunity to respond with respect and restorative commitment.”
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