Biden praises Vernon Jordan: He ‘knew the soul of America’

President Biden acknowledged the life of Vernon Jordan on Tuesday afternoon, hailing him as a man who “knew the soul of America.”

Biden issued a statement on Tuesday praising Jordan’s legacy. The civil rights icon and renowned political adviser died Monday night at the age of 85.

“Vernon Jordan knew the soul of America, in all of its goodness and all of its unfulfilled promise. And he knew the work was far from over,” Biden said.

“He liked to say that we had torn down what Dr. King called ‘sagging walls of segregation,’ but we still had to deal with ‘the rubble’—with systemic racism, with inequity, with the injustice still faced by so many Black Americans,” Biden continued. “To honor him, and others of this Civil Rights generation, we must continue to do the same.”

Biden recounted Jordan’s legacy as an attorney, civil rights activist and president of the National Urban League from 1971 to 1981. 

He said Jordan “was often the first in many rooms but never afraid to speak his mind.”

“Vernon navigated America’s boardrooms with an activist’s heart, working the levers of power in service of progress,” Biden said. “And the countless business and political leaders who turned to Vernon for guidance did so because when he spoke, you could hear in his rich baritone the belief in an America that was capable of becoming an ever-more perfect union.”  

Jordan advised multiple presidents, but is most associated with his time working with Bill and Hillary Clinton.

He was the senior managing director for investment firm Lazard Group LLC from 2000 until his death.