Former US president Barack Obama has described Joe Biden as “a patriot of the highest order” after he decided to withdraw from the US presidential race. “Joe Biden has been one of America’s most consequential presidents, as well as a dear friend and partner to me. Today, we’ve also been reminded – again – that he’s a patriot of the highest order.” Obama went on to praise Biden’s “deep empathy and hard-earned resilience; his fundamental decency and belief that everyone counts.” He went on to list Biden’s achievements, including helping to end the pandemic, creating millions of jobs, lowering th…