Democrats are growing increasingly worried that Biden’s campaign is sinking following his disastrous debate defeat, and with it their hopes of retaining the Senate and retaking the House in November.
In key races across the country, particularly the Senate, Democrats are ahead of Biden in the polls, potentially marking a contrast to the 2020 election, when Biden generally outperformed lawmakers and other candidates in his party.
“If the president doesn’t perform well, there’s concern about the impact on lower-level races,” Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) acknowledged Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
“Right now, the lower-ranking candidates in the Senate and House are doing well,” Schiff continued. “They’re pretty far ahead of the president, but they can only get so far ahead of the president.”
Schiff said Sunday that the only reason Biden is trailing former President Donald Trump by six points nationally, according to post-debate polls, is because of the president’s age and concerns about his fitness to serve.
The House is due to return to session on Monday, where Democrats will be bombarded with questions from reporters. Democrats were scheduled to meet on a Zoom conference call on Sunday afternoon before the House returns to session.
“It’s going to be a big mess on Monday when Congress returns,” one Democratic lawmaker said. He told Axios“People are scared about their race, but they’re also worried about their country and their democracy.”
This is especially true in the Senate, where Democrats face tough districting challenges to maintain their 51-49 advantage. Essentially, Democrats must defend 23 seats compared to 11 held by Republicans.
According to the latest statistics, Trump is currently leading Biden in all seven key battleground states. RealClearPolitics poll compilation.
But Rep. Ruben Gallego (D) is outperforming his Republican rivals in Arizona, as are Sen. Jacky Rosen (D) in Nevada, Sen. Bob Casey Jr. (D) in Pennsylvania, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D) in Wisconsin, and Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D) in Michigan. According to RCP statistics.
“We’re not seeing any signs of Democratic weakness outside of Joe Biden’s polling. Whether it’s the results of the special election, the midterms or polling of other Democrats, the issues seem limited to Biden,” said Nate Cohen, a political analyst for The Upshot at The New York Times. He told The New Yorker.
Some of this polling reflects voters’ tendency to blame Biden for woes like inflation and the border crisis, while still being tolerant of many Democrats.
Republican candidates have tried to use Biden’s political weaknesses as weapons against their rivals. For example, Pennsylvania Republican Dave McCormick’s team ran a commercial in which Casey criticized Biden’s age and energy.
Already, at least five current House Democrats are pleading with Biden to hand the baton to someone else amid growing concerns about his age, energy and ability to win.
Even more secretly want Biden to step down.
“Candidates for House, Senate, governor and state legislature are going to be in survival mode,” the “well-known” Democrat said. He told Axios“They will not go down with the ship. And the ship is in danger.”
In the Senate, Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) is trying to rally his colleagues to urge Biden to step down. The Washington Post reported.His spokesman did not deny the reports.
Biden, 81, was adamant he would see it through to the end unless “Almighty God” intervened, and declined to answer questions about why some Democrats were outperforming him in key states.
“That’s not uncommon in some states. The last time I ran in 2020, I had the support of so many Democrats. I remember them telling me the same thing in 2020: ‘You can’t win. The polls show you can’t win,'” Biden said. He told ABC News In an interview last Friday, he stressed that in the end, it was he who prevailed.
The president was confident he could prove his opponents wrong this time.
“This isn’t just about the presidential election, it’s about the risk of a Republican sweep,” said former Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.Y. He told CNBC“When donors come forward it makes a big difference in lower-level races.”
Several prominent Democratic donors, including Abigail Disney, have called on other donors to stop giving money to Biden until he withdraws.
Other deep-pocketed donors Reflected on the diversion of resources They will pump money into every campaign, from presidential elections to lower-level elections, to stem potential financial drain.
“I don’t think we can take things lightly with civility. That would be cruel. It will not energize our base. We already have problems with young people. We are already losing different minority groups,” the former congressman said. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) told CBS:.
“If we continue on this path, we will see fewer voters turn out and we will see people like Sherrod Brown hanged. [in Ohio]Jon Tester [in Montana]I’m going to blame Bob Casey of Pennsylvania.”
Brown leads the polls in the Buckeye State, according to RCP’s tally, but the state has seen a sharp rise in Republican support and isn’t even considered a major battleground in the 2024 presidential election.
Meanwhile, polls show Trump as competitive in states where Republicans previously had little chance of winning nationally, including Virginia, Minnesota and New Hampshire.
Despite the Republican Party not winning the popular vote in a presidential election since 2004, Trump’s approval rating has risen in the RCP polls.
Asked about his slipping popularity poll numbers across the country, Biden retorted: “I don’t believe that.”
But many Democrats are not quick to dismiss the polls. Biden generally had the advantage. There has been significant opposition to Trump ahead of the 2020 election.
Adding fuel to these fears are the electoral stakes for Democrats, many of whom see Trump as an existential threat to democracy and fear a second term would further embolden him.
Some point to the Supreme Court’s ruling last week on presidential immunity, which ruled that the president is immune from criminal prosecution for acts committed while in office.
“What the Supreme Court has done in this decision is vest almost dictatorial powers into the next person to take that office, whether that be Joe Biden or whoever else,” Schiff further expressed his concerns on Meet the Press.
Alan Clendenin, Florida’s longest serving Democratic National Committee member It said in a statement “The future of the republic as we know it is in imminent danger and we must put country above party or individual,” he said Sunday.
“I believe it is in the best interest of our country and the world for President Joe Biden to step down and for Vice President Kamala Harris to advance his policies as the Democratic nominee.”
But some are wary that trying to re-establish a top candidate again, with just five months to go until the election, could only make things worse.
Those concerns were reinforced by Rob Flaherty, deputy campaign manager for the Biden-Harris campaign, at a fundraiser last week where he blasted the “bedwetters” in the Democratic Party who are calling on Biden to step aside.
“If he were to withdraw, it would lead to weeks of chaos, intraparty fighting and a flurry of candidates limping into violent convention floor brawls while Donald Trump has time to speak to American voters unopposed,” Flaherty wrote.
