Democrats have paused efforts to field a candidate to replace President Biden as the 2024 Democratic nominee in the wake of the assassination attempt on former President Trump, with one lawmaker reportedly saying they have all given up on a “2nd Trump.”
While many Democrats are concerned about Biden’s declining cognitive abilities and his ability to beat Trump in the election, those concerns have been put on the back burner as they focus on their own security and a unifying language for a country reeling from the weekend assassination attempt on Trump. Axios reported Sunday.
Since last month’s debate debacle, a growing number of House Democrats and one Democratic senator have called on Biden to drop out of the race, but reports suggest that the assassination attempt on Trump may have dampened their momentum.
Democratic effort to replace Trump with Biden is ‘over’ after assassination attempt, president’s ally says: Report
US President Joe Biden made the statement in a short speech at the White House in Washington, USA, on July 14, 2024, the day after Republican candidate Donald Trump was shot at a campaign rally. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)
A House Democrat who has been quite critical of Biden told Axios that “we’re all focused on mourning and keeping our team safe.” Politics, they say, are not on their minds.
Another Democratic lawmaker said the domestic environment was too “chaotic” at the moment to have a political standoff over a candidate, according to the outlet.
“With one American dead and a former president and others injured, a shocked nation is struggling with how to restore reason and respect,” Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, a Democrat, told Axios in a statement. “It would be unpatriotic and unprincipled to focus our energy in the coming days on anything other than yesterday’s national tragedy. The only thing that should be said about President Biden is how he will comfort our nation, address the anger, and respond to this situation.”
As questions linger on Capitol Hill about whether Biden will be able to govern for another four years, Democratic lawmakers told Axios, “we don’t think that’s the focus right now.”
Witness accounts after Pennsylvania assassination attempt on Trump: ‘There was blood everywhere’
Republican presidential candidate and former US President Donald Trump is assisted by security guards after shots rang out during a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show in Butler, Pennsylvania, USA, on July 13, 2024. (Reuters/Brendan McDiarmid)
Asked by Axios whether they thought the abrupt pause on the issue would last until next month’s Democratic National Convention, one senior Democrat said it was a possibility, adding, “We’re all prepared for President Trump to be re-elected.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the Biden campaign for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Addressing the nation from the Oval Office on Sunday night, Biden said the assassination attempt on former President Trump has forced Americans to “take a step back” and called on all sides to “de-escalate the political situation.”
Trump was hit on Saturday by multiple shots fired at the stage from an elevated location near an outdoor venue in Butler, Pennsylvania. The bullet penetrated the top of Trump’s right ear and Secret Service personnel escorted him off the stage. Corey Comperatore, a former Buffalo Township, Pennsylvania, fire chief, was fatally wounded while trying to shield his wife and daughters from the bullets.
LIVE UPDATES: Former President Trump survives assassination attempt, FBI identifies perpetrator as Thomas Matthew Crooks
Republican presidential candidate and former US President Donald Trump reacts as multiple gunshots ring out during a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show in Butler, Pennsylvania, USA, July 13, 2024. (Reuters/Brendan McDiarmid)
The shooter was identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks. Crooks was shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper shortly after the shooting.
Biden said the parties needed to “resolve their differences at the ballot box” and called on Americans to “step out of our silos.”
“Let’s not forget that in America right now, unity is the hardest goal of all to achieve,” he said. “Nothing is more important to us right now than unity. We can get this done.”
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The Biden campaign announced Saturday night that it was halting all campaign advertising targeting Trump and suspending all external communications. The campaign is in the midst of a $50 million advertising offensive this month that has seen it run ads in every key battleground state.
Fox News’ Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
