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Should Biden Step Aside or Stay In? What Prominent Democrats Are Saying
The angst among Democrats over President Biden’s debate performance is intensifying, with some party members starting to voice concern about his candidacy and some others urging him to withdraw. The situation is threatening to divide the party ahead of its national convention next month in Chicago, where Mr. Biden is scheduled to accept the Democratic nomination.
Said Biden should step aside
“I had hoped that the debate would provide some momentum to change that. It did not.”
Lloyd Doggett
“Another Democrat would have a better shot at beating Trump.”
Julián Castro
“After deep reflection over these past few days, I strongly believe that our best path forward is Kamala Harris.”
Tim Ryan “I think the president should step aside and let the convention pick a new candidate.”
Tom Harkin
“The time is now for another Democratic candidate to take his place on the November ballot.” Marianne Williamson
“It is absolutely not too late to pick a new candidate.”
R.T. Rybak
“What he needs to do is shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seat — and part of that responsibility is to get out of this race.”
Raúl M. Grijalva
Expressed concern “We’re having a serious conversation about what to do.”
Jamie Raskin
“I think it is a legitimate question to say is this an episode or is this a condition?”
Nancy Pelosi “We have strong people, not just the top of the ticket, but around the ticket, who can be strong surrogates.”
Jake Auchincloss
“We have heard concerns from people who saw the president on Thursday night. I felt concerned and raised those concerns.” Hillary Scholten
“I really do criticize the campaign for a dismissive attitude towards people who are raising questions for discussion.”
Peter Welch
“Like a lot of people, I was pretty horrified.”
Sheldon Whitehouse
“It has to be his decision. We have to be honest with ourselves. It wasn’t just a horrible night.”
Mike Quigley “President Biden has got to go out there, and in a sustained basis, show he has the stamina and can do the job.”
Debbie Dingell
“We all saw what we saw. You can’t undo that.” Marie Gluesenkamp Perez
“In 2025, I believe Trump is going to be in the White House.”
Jared Golden
“The question is can he effectively prosecute the case against Trump.”
Greg Landsman
“If he is going to stay in, he needs to step up.”
Don Davis “In order to respond to our constituents’ concerns, we need to demonstrate that the president is fit not just for the job, but for the campaign.”
Ann McLane Kuster
“This White House is going to have to be way less insular than they have been.” Katie Porter
“I deeply respect President Biden and all the great things he has done for America, but I have grave concerns about his ability to defeat Donald Trump.”
Seth Moulton
Expressed support
“I am proud to support Joe Biden as our nominee and I am behind him 100 percent in the fight to defeat Donald Trump.”
Gretchen Whitmer
“Joe Biden is going to be our nominee, unless he decides otherwise.”
J. B. Pritzker
“A setback is nothing more than a setup for a comeback.”
Hakeem Jeffries “I am confident that Joe Biden will keep America’s economy humming, create millions of jobs, and will fiercely protect Social Security, Medicare and our basic freedoms and democracy.”
Debbie Wasserman Schultz
“The person to defeat Donald Trump is going to be the Joe Biden, Kamala Harris ticket.” Robert Garcia
“I’m with Joe Biden.”
Chuck Schumer
“The only Democrat who has ever beaten Donald Trump is Joe Biden. He is our candidate for November.”
Chris Coons
“I’ll do my best to get him elected.”
Bernie Sanders “And I think the American people understand that this president has delivered. There’s a lot of folks supporting him.”
Tim Walz
“Joe Biden’s presidency has been among the most productive and successful in American history.” Pete Buttigieg
“This ain’t the West Wing … we have had a process, millions voted for Joe Biden and we have our nominee!”
Jaime Harrison
“It’s a difference between a bad initial debate and a very bad presidency, which Donald Trump can claim.”
Jack Reed
“As the president himself has said, don’t compare him to the almighty, compare him to the alternative. And by that metric, the choice is abundantly clear in this race.”
Katie Hobbs “President Biden has my full confidence as president and if he chooses to remain in the race, he’ll have my full support.”
John Hickenlooper
“The president has a great record to run on.” Jason Crow
“President Joe Biden is in it to win it, and all of us said we pledged our support to him.”
Kathy Hochul
“Joe Biden’s had our back. Now it’s time to have his.”
Gavin Newsom
“I suspect people will need to see the president in person and on TV to be convinced he is up to it. He is.”
Josh Green