According to several news reports, at least five Democratic lawmakers spoke out on Sunday, suggesting President Joe Biden withdraw from the upcoming US presidential election on November 5.
During a Democratic Party phone call convened to discuss Biden's poor debate performance against his Republican rival, Donald Trump, in Atlanta on June 27, Jerry Nadler, Mark Takano, Joe Morelle, Ted Lieu, and Adam Smith all shared their opinion on this matter.
Biden himself has described his performance as "a bad night". The level of support for him has decreased, and members of his own party have begun to question his health and ability to lead the country for the next four years. Biden has stated that he plans to continue in the race and has expressed confidence in his ability to win the election against Trump in November.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries organized an online meeting of his party colleagues in the House of Representatives to explore the changing political landscape following the June 27 presidential debate between Biden and Trump.
The virtual meeting was billed as a "listening session" to get input from members about the viability of Biden's candidacy, "The New York Times reported. The paper added that it was clear before the call that many top Democrats felt strongly that Biden had to go.
Congressman Smith, who holds the highest position on the Armed Services Committee, expressed the opinion, based on information from two sources, that Biden should step down, as reported by the daily. The four additional members of Congress shared this sentiment and agreed that it was appropriate for Biden to withdraw from the race.
"Lieu was the highest-ranking person in the House Democratic leadership to support pressing for Biden to not seek reelection," "The Washington Post" reported.
"The developments opened a wide crack in Biden's wall of support, bringing the number of House Democrats publicly or privately saying he should step aside to about 10. They included the top Democrats on the Judiciary, Armed Services and Intelligence committees. The defections cast further doubts on Biden's path forward, even as he largely controls his own fate thanks to sweeping the Democratic presidential primaries," "The Wall Street Journal" reported.
Meanwhile, Biden and his team appeared defiant to such a call and asserted that he is in the race. Biden himself has exuded confidence that he would defeat Trump in November.
Biden was in Pennsylvania on Sunday, addressing rallies and meeting people in the key battleground state.
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