Two high-stakes meetings of congressional Democrats Tuesday afternoon yielded no real consensus as to President Joe Biden’s future as the party’s presidential candidate.
Some House Democratic lawmakers offering soundbites to the media following a luncheon mostly signaled support for the 81-year-old commander-in-chief while hedging their bets by not resoundingly endorsing the notion that Biden is not suffering from cognitive decline.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, speculation over the president’s mental fitness for the job exploded following his disastrous showing in last month’s presidential debate against former President Donald Trump. The fallout included multiple news outlets calling on him to step aside so another candidate could emerge, as well as defections from big-pocket Democratic donors and some legislators.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), who has remained largely tight-lipped about Biden’s fitness for office, told CBS News that Tuesday’s meeting gave his caucus members “an opportunity to express themselves in a candid and comprehensive fashion.” He noted, however, that discussions would continue throughout the remainder of the week.
He previously voiced support for Biden on Monday, stating, “I made clear publicly the day after the debate that I support President Joe Biden and the Democratic ticket. My position has not changed.”
Other lawmakers, however, did not offer explicit endorsements of Biden’s candidacy.
Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA), chair of the Democratic Caucus, told reporters that he and his colleagues would be watching the president over the coming days, citing a highly anticipated press conference scheduled for Thursday.
“Let’s see the press conference. Let’s see the campaign stops. Let’s see all of this because all of it is going to be necessary [to beat Trump],” Aguilar said, per CNN.
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), the first Democratic lawmaker to publicly call on Biden to get out of the way, as previously reported by The Dallas Express, argued vociferously for an alternative during the meeting of House Democrats.
“I share admiration for his work in office, but the dangers of a Trump presidency are so significant that we have to put forward our strongest candidate,” Doggett said, opting not to name who he would prefer.
Echoing Doggett, Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) issued a conciliatory statement urging the president to drop out.
“I know that President Biden and his team have been true public servants and have put the country and the best interests of democracy first and foremost in their considerations. And because I know President Biden cares deeply about the future of our country, I am asking that he declare that he won’t run for reelection and will help lead us through a process toward a new nominee,” she said, according to CNN.
A separate meeting of Democratic senators seemingly signaled less disharmony.
“We concluded that Joe Biden is old; we found out, and the polling came back that he’s old,” Sen. John Fetterman (D-NY) said to CNN when he left the meeting. “But we also agreed that he’s our guy.”
“As I’ve said before, I’m with Joe,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said, refusing to elaborate on what lawmakers discussed, according to Politico.
Sen. Angus King (I-ME), an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, was much more cautious in his estimation.
“The president has to be more active. He has to be out there in unscripted situations, answering questions, interacting with voters in order to demonstrate that the debate performance was an anomaly,” said King, per CNN.
Post-debate polling shows that Trump has the edge over Biden, who has thus far claimed he will become the Democratic nominee coming out of the party’s convention in August.
“If any of these guys don’t think I should run, run against me,” Biden said in an appearance on Morning Joe on Monday, according to The New York Times. “Go ahead, announce for president. Challenge me at the convention.”