I gave my best - Biden

Hillary Clinton backing Harris to finally break the glass ceiling.

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An emotional US President Joe Biden passed the torch to Democratic nominee Kamala Harris with a hug on Monday, saying he gave everything for his country in a bittersweet farewell speech at the party's convention in Chicago.

"America, America, I gave my best to you," the 81-year-old Biden said, quoting a patriotic hymn during a nearly hour-long address that ran through his achievements while urging voters to back his vice-president against Donald Trump in November.

Harris joined him on stage after the speech as the crowd gave Biden a rapturous reception following his stunning decision less than a month ago to drop out of the 2024 White House race.

In a remarkable turnaround, Harris has re-energised the party and wiped out Republican rival Trump's lead in the polls, but Biden insisted that he was not bitter about stepping aside.

Instead, as he contemplates the imminent end of a five-decade political career, he said that he had done what he thought best to ensure that his nemesis, Trump, does not return to the Oval Office.