Joe Biden is out of the Presidential race. That is a sentence I didn't believe I'd ever write, even with all the noise over the past month. His letter, bizarrely a screenshot posted on X/Twitter, says that he plans to give a speech later this week informing Americans why he dropped out in "more detail." The nation deserves that speech, an update on Biden's health, and confirmation Biden can finish his term.

Ever since the debate, Biden told Americans he'd only get out of the race unless the Lord Almighty or a health issue forced him out. Biden insisted that he never believed any of the polls. Americans need to know what changed.

The closest parallel to Biden dropping out is President Lyndon Baines Johnson stepping out of the race on March 31, 1968. Johnson had talked to his speechwriters earlier in the year about not running ahead of his State of the Union address. The toll of the Presidency, combined with ill health, had Johnson worried he wouldn't be able to finish a term.

Johnson's fears deepened after the first primary on March 12, 1968, in which Eugene McCarthy won 42% to Johnson's 49%. The result shocked everyone, as Johnson's standing was much weaker than expected. A few days later, Robert F. Kennedy entered the race, making things even worse. Johnson folded by the end of the month.

Johnson gave a 40-minute speech to the nation explaining why he was dropping out and promising to fulfill the rest of his term. He ended up having to do far more than that and help patch the Democratic Party back together after the assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. that year. The Democratic convention was a madhouse.

But at least in that situation, primaries were held. Democrats had the option to weigh in on Johnson dropping out and were boosted by the fact that Johnson had not made any serious attempt to campaign that year.

We don't have any of those things with Biden right now. Last Wednesday, the Biden administration suddenly pulled Biden out of all events, canceled a speech, declared Biden had COVID, and rushed him home. Cameras showed him struggling to get in his motorcade and gingerly exiting the plane.

That was the last time the country saw Joe Biden until he posted on his X/Twitter account at 1:46 pm Eastern Standard Time that he was dropping out. A few minutes later, he tweeted again that he was endorsing Kamala Harris, a missing point from his letter.

Joe Biden's brother, Frank Biden, the youngest of his siblings, sparked more concern when he told ABC News and CBS News that fears of Joe Biden's health "absolutely" played a part in the decision.

Frank Biden told CBS News, "Selfishly, I will have him back to enjoy whatever time we have left." He added, "In my humble opinion, absolutely, the President's health was part of Biden's decision to announce that he wouldn't run for reelection."

ABC News confirmed that with Frank Biden. He said, "the decision 'boils down' to Biden's 'overall health and vitality' but also 'beating this genuine threat to our nation in the form of Donald Trump."

Is any of that true? It's hard to tell. Anonymous sources "close to the Bidens" blasted Frank Biden and his claims, "Frank Biden suffers from alcoholism and hasn't spoken to his brother in weeks."

After listening to some of these same sources assure everyone that Biden wasn't dropping out of the race, it's time to take these anonymous sources with a grain of salt. As with the debate, everyone in America can look at Biden and see an obvious decline. 

Naturally, the follow-up question is, if Biden is in this bad shape, can he even do the job? Americans haven't seen the President since he claimed to be sick with COVID and went to Delaware. Now, they need the President to return to the White House, deliver remarks, and explain what is happening.

Johnson did that in 1968, and Americans deserve that now. What Democrats decide to do in replacing Biden is a discussion for another day. The immediate question is whether the current Commander-in-Chief can do the job he was elected to do. If not, then we need to pause Kamala Harris' political ambitions and see if she should actually be the President right now and not run for the job. 

America is the leader of the free world. We can't have an absentee President. If Biden can't perform even the basics anymore, then this isn't a question about his polls or anything else. It's a question of national security. 

Biden can't hide from this responsibility. He swore an oath to uphold that part of the office, and he has to uphold that. Americans need to hear from the President now, not ask: Where is Joe Biden?