President Biden may soon face increased pressure from Democrats in Congress to drop out of the 2024 race, according to a report.
At least 25 House Democrats are preparing to call for the 81-year-president to end his re-election bid in the wake of his disastrous debate against former President Donald Trump, Reuters reported Tuesday, citing a House Democratic aide.
Centrist House Democrats in competitive districts – the lawmakers most at risk of losing their seats in November – were so alarmed by Biden’s infirmed appearance in last week’s showdown with the 78-year-old presumptive Republican nominee that they are considering writing a letter to Biden, according to the outlet.
What to know about the fallout from President Biden's debate performance:
- President Biden’s poor performance in the first 2024 presidential debate has left even some Democrats unsure of his fitness for office and future as the party’s candidate.
- Former President Obama admitted that Biden had a “bad” debate, while his rival former President Trump suggested that he was in a “trance” and “choked.”
- Biden told a crowd at a North Carolina rally the day after the debate that he doesn’t “debate as well as I used to” — but insisted that he can still “do this job.”
- The New York Times editorial board called on the president to serve the country by dropping out of the race. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution published a similar editorial a day later.
- Biden gathered with his family to assess the campaign’s future at Camp David, with his son Hunter reportedly pushing for him to stay in the race. Family members questioned if the president’s top advisors should be fired after the disastrous debate.
- Legendary journalist Carl Bernstein revealed that sources close to Biden have witnessed as many as 20 episodes of cognitive decline in the past year.
- Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) became the first House Democrat to call on Biden to drop out.
- Those lawmakers have been peppered with questions about Biden by constituents since returning to their districts for the House’s Fourth of July week recess.
“It looks like the dam has broken,” a second House Democratic aide told the outlet.
The report comes after Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) became the first House Democrat to call on Biden to step aside over his shaky debate, in which the president repeatedly froze up on stage and lost his train of thought.
Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine), also on Tuesday, expressed that he had no confidence in Biden’s ability to beat Trump in November.\
As did Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.), who told local outlet KATU, “The truth I think, is that Biden is going to lose to Trump.”
“I know that’s difficult, but I think the damage has been done by that debate,” she added, stopping short of calling on Biden to drop out of the race.
Biden is expected to meet with Democratic state governors on Wednesday to discuss his 2024 strategy and his debate performance with Trump.
The White House also indicated that meetings between Biden and congressional leaders were in the works as well.
The offices of multiple House Democratic leaders did not respond to The Post’s requests for comment.
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