Rep. Pat Ryan, D-N.Y., is the latest Democrat to call on President Joe Biden to step down in the “national interest.”
Ryan reportedly doesn’t believe the 81-year-old Biden can comprehensively defeat former President Donald Trump, whom he has called an “existential threat.”
“I’d be making a huge blunder if I said he’s the best candidate to run for office this fall,” Ryan said. Saidby The New York Times.
“For the sake of our country and for the sake of my two young children, I ask Joe Biden to step down in the next election and make good on his promise to build a bridge to a new generation of leadership,” he said, adding, “I truly hope, from the bottom of my heart, that he will listen.”
Ryan was one of the few Democrats to call on Biden to resign after his lackluster performance in a debate with Trump in Atlanta, which immediately sparked widespread panic among Democrats and sparked rumors that they might replace the 81-year-old Biden as a last-ditch effort to win the election.
RELATED — “Panic!” CNN panel upset over Biden’s disastrous debate performance
CNN
Ryan isn’t alone. On Monday, Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, called for Biden to step down, citing “concerns about the president’s health issues” and that he doesn’t believe Biden is “an effective communicator at this time.”
“We have a great message. I think the president has done a good job over the last four years. … But what we saw in the debates and what we’ve seen since and some of the examples before that, he’s not an effective communicator of that,” he said, adding that “the stakes are too high.”
And in early July There was a report Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) has reportedly organized a caucus of Democrats calling on Biden to drop out of the race, but Biden wrote a letter to concerned Democrats saying he would not resign.
“Democrats voted. They chose me as their nominee. Does that mean the process didn’t matter?” Biden clarified. “I wouldn’t say it didn’t matter.”
This morning, I sent a letter to my Democratic colleagues in Congress in which I shared my thoughts about this moment in the campaign.
Now is the time to come together, move forward as a united party, and defeat Donald Trump. pic.twitter.com/ABtAaJrr0n
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 8, 2024
Many Democrats have also issued weaker statements since then, including Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, who said simply that she would “remain focused on positive policies and communicating the contrast between Democrats and Donald Trump,” barely addressing Biden.
Recently, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) It caused a stir He also did not take a clear stance on Biden, saying only that it was “up to him” whether he continued to campaign.
“Time is running out and we’re all encouraging him to make that decision,” she said.
RELATED — Pelosi: It’s “legitimate” to ask if Biden debate was an episode or a condition
