Just after Hillary Clinton delivered her concession speech on Wednesday morning, President Barack Obama convened a press conference to deliver a concession, of sorts, of his own. Accompanied by Vice President Joe Biden, Obama offered a message of unity and reassured Americans that there would be smooth and peaceful transition of power after Donald Trump unexpectedly won the presidential election Tuesday night, shocking the nation.

“Now, it is no secret that the president-elect and I have some pretty significant differences,” Obama said. “But, remember, eight years ago President Bush and I had some pretty significant differences. But President Bush's team could not have been more professional or more gracious in making sure we had a smooth transition so that we could hit the ground running. And one thing you realize quickly in this job is that the presidency and the vice presidency is bigger than any of us.”

The “peaceful transition of power is one of the hallmarks of our democracy,” Obama added, insisting that come January, “we are going to show that to the world.”

Addressing a crowd of about 300 reporters and White House staffers, Obama appeared drained but stoic as he called on Americans to unify after an ugly, divisive election. “Everybody is sad when their side loses an election. But we have to remember that we are all on the same team,” he said. “This is an intramural scrimmage. We’re Americans first. We’re patriots first.” Obama, who was reportedly stunned by Trump’s victory over Clinton, and whose administration didn’t plan for or even conceive that a Trump win was possible, said Trump will be taking over “a stronger, better country than it was eight years ago.”

On Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said that the president had called Trump to congratulate him on his victory and to invite him to the White House, where the two are scheduled to speak Thursday about their transition plans.

“I have said before, I think of this job as being a relay runner,” Obama continued, his head held high. “You take the baton. You run your best race. And hopefully by the time you hand it off, you're a little further ahead. You've made a little progress. And I can say that we've done that and I want to make sure that handoff is well executed, because ultimately we're all on the same team.”