Dozens of House Dems ready to demand Biden step aside if mental, physical frailty persists: Report
If he looks shaky over the next few days, more Democratic House members are preparing to urge President Biden not to run for reelection in 2024.
An aide to Reuters said that 25 House Democrats were ready to move if the 81 year old president’s mental decline, as shown in the debate last week, continues.
Since he was unable to answer questions clearly during the CNN debate in Atlanta against Donald Trump, the Biden campaign has been struggling to convince voters, lawmakers, and party donors that he is capable of leading the country.
According to a new CNN poll released on Tuesday, 75% of registered voters believe that the Democratic Party would have a better shot at beating Donald Trump if someone other than Joe Biden was placed in the top spot. This includes 56% Democratic voters who would like to see another candidate at the top of the ticket.
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The first two members of Mr. Biden’s caucus, Reps. Lloyd Doggett from Texas and Jared Golden from Maine, publicly called for him to withdraw.
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, a Washington first-term legislator, told KATU in an interview on Tuesday that while she believes Mr. Biden is going to lose, she did not call for him to withdraw from the race.
In the beginning, Mr. Biden had the support of Democrats such as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi who stated immediately after the debate: “Joe Biden’s decision to move forward is a choice that we will embrace due to his record and the performance he will bring with it.”
In an interview with MSNBC on Tuesday, she became less enthusiastic about her support. She said that it was fair to question whether the debate performance of Mr. Trump was just a one-off event.
She said, “I believe it is a legitimate question for people to ask, ‘Is it an episode or a condition?’ This question can be asked by both candidates.”
Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary on Tuesday, said that Mr. Biden had not suffered an “episode”, but rather a bad evening.
Biden blamed his poor performance in the debate at a private fundraising event in Virginia, held on Tuesday night. He attributed it to the international travel he had done in June.
He claimed this despite having been in the U.S. nearly two weeks before the debate, and despite earlier claims made by his aides during the debate claiming that he was suffering from a cold.
“I decided that I would travel around the globe a few times,” said Mr. Biden. “I wasn’t very clever.”
Mr. Biden claimed that he disregarded the advice from his staff who said he shouldn’t have taken part in the debate. He did not explain why.
“I didn’t pay attention to my staff,” he said, adding that “I came back and almost fell asleep on the stage.”
Biden will address the concerns of his party this week, when he addresses Democratic Governors on Wednesday. He is also expected to speak to other legislators throughout the week.
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