Nine House Democrats and one senator asked President Joe Biden to suspend his reelection campaign Friday, with all arguing that Biden cannot win due to the light shed on “senior moments” instead of his capabilities and accomplishments.
“If the upcoming election is a referendum on past performance, future promises, and character, I have every confidence Biden would win,” Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL) wrote in an op-ed to the Chicago Tribune. “But politics, like life, isn’t fair. And as long as this election is instead litigated over which candidate is more likely to be held accountable for public gaffes and ‘senior moments,’ I believe that Biden is not only going to lose but is also uniquely incapable of shifting that conversation.”
Shortly after Casten’s op-ed, four other House Democrats — Reps. Jared Huffman (D-CA), Marc Veasey (D-TX), Chuy Garcia (D-IL), and Mark Pocan (D-WI) — also called on Biden to pass the torch in a joint statement. They said they appreciated Biden’s work over the last four years and in the decades spent in other political offices, but defeating former President Donald Trump is a top priority.
“At this point, however, we must face the reality that widespread public concerns about your age and fitness are jeopardizing what should be a winning campaign,” the lawmakers said.
“We believe the most responsible and patriotic thing you can do in this moment is to step aside as our nominee while continuing to lead our party from the White House,” the lawmakers continued.
Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) shortly after became the third senator to call for Biden to step aside, saying in a statement that the 2024 election calls for a “focus that is bigger than any one person.”
“While the decision to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden’s alone, I believe it is in the best interests of our country for him to step aside,” Heinrich said. By passing the torch, he would secure his legacy as one of our nation’s greatest leaders and allow us to unite behind a candidate who can best defeat Donald Trump and safeguard the future of our democracy.”
Another House Democrat, Rep. Greg Landsman (D-OH), joined his colleagues in calling on Biden to suspend his campaign Friday afternoon. He said Democrats need a candidate who can “make that case to the American people about the change we need and the country we all deserve.”
“After weeks of consideration and hundreds of conversations with constituents, I have come to the conclusion that Joe Biden is no longer the best person to make that case,” Landsman posted on X.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), a close ally of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), sent a letter to Biden on Friday asking him to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race.
Lofgren said she, as a member of the House Jan. 6 committee, knows “perhaps as well as anyone, how unsuitable Donald Trump is to be President.”
“Simply put, your candidacy is on a trajectory to lose the White House and potentially impact crucial House and Senate races down ballot,” Lofgren said. “It is for these reasons that I urge you to step aside from our Party’s nomination to allow another Democratic candidate to compete against and beat Donald Trump in the November election.”
Shortly after Lofgren’s statement, both Reps. Betty McCollum (D-MN) and Kathy Castor (D-FL) called on Biden to pass the torch. McCollum endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as Biden’s successor and encouraged Democrats to select Gov. Tim Waltz (D-MN) as her running mate.
“Winning in November and defeating [former President Donald] Trump’s dangerous, hate-filled agenda must be Democrats’ sole focus,” McCollum said in a statement via the Star Tribune. “To give Democrats a strong, viable path to winning the White House, I am calling upon President Biden to release his delegates and empower Vice President Harris to step forward to become the Democratic nominee for president.”
Castor said it is an “exciting time to possibly pass the torch,” and also noted that Harris would be a good pick for the party as the new nominee.
“Kamala Harris is a fighter and I have full confidence in her,” the Florida Democrat said to local outlet WFLA in Tampa, Florida.
There are now 32 congressional Democrats who are calling on Biden to drop out of the presidential contest. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) called on Biden to withdraw on Thursday.
Others calling on Biden to step aside include Reps. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Seth Moulton (D-MA), Angie Craig (D-MN), Pat Ryan (D-NY), Adam Smith (D-WA), Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ), Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Hillary Scholten (D-MI), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Greg Stanton (D-AZ), Ed Case (D-HI), Jim Himes (D-CT), Scott Peters (D-CA), Eric Sorensen (D-IL), Brittany Pettersen (D-CO), Mike Levin (D-CA), and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA) and Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT).
Veasey’s decision to ask Biden to pass the torch is notable, considering he is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, a group of lawmakers who have been a strong ally to the president over the years. Biden spoke to the caucus last week, with many stating their coalition was standing behind Biden for his reelection campaign.
Biden and his campaign are adamant that the president is not standing aside and will be the Democratic nominee, but there are reports that he is more receptive to the idea of allowing a new candidate to step forward. The campaign has denied this.
All five lawmakers spoke to Biden’s legacy in their statements, with Casten writing that the president has earned a departure with “dignity and decency.” His comments mirror those written by his colleagues in their own messages to the president.
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“It is with a heavy heart and much personal reflection that I am therefore calling on Biden to pass the torch to a new generation,” Casten said. “To manage an exit with all the dignity and decency that has guided his half-century of public service. To cement his legacy as the president who saved our democracy in 2020 and handed it off to trusted hands in 2024 who could carry his legacy forward.”
“It breaks my heart to say it, but Biden is no longer up for that job,” he added.
