Democratic congressman and senatorial candidate Adam Schiff has called on US President Joe Biden to withdraw his candidacy in the presidential election. The politician, who belongs to the party elite, expressed doubts as to whether he has a chance of winning against Donald Trump. American media reports that other Democratic Party leaders, including Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, have also appealed to Biden to withdraw from the race.
“Joe Biden was one of the most significant presidents in our nation's history, and his lifelong service as a senator, vice president, and now president has made our country a better place,” the California congressman said in a statement Wednesday. Adam Schiffwho is running for senator from that state this year. “But our nation is at a crossroads. A second Trump presidency would undermine the foundation of our democracy, and I have serious concerns about whether the president can defeat Donald Trump in November,” he added.
Schiff is perhaps the most high-profile Democrat in Congress to openly call on a sitting president to drop out of the race. The former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee was known, among other things, as a key figure in Trump’s first impeachment.
He is the 20th member of the House of Representatives and the 21st member of Congress to call on Biden to withdraw his candidacy. Most of them have been lesser-known politicians, mostly from vulnerable constituencies.
US President Joe BidenCAROLINE BREHMAN/PAP/EPA
Schiff: Democrats could suffer 'landmark defeat'
As reported by the New York Times, Schiff reportedly stated during a recent meeting with donors that the party could suffer an “overwhelming defeat” in electionsif Biden remains the candidate.
According to Puck News, during Biden's recent virtual meeting with dozens of congressmen – which took place just before Trump's assassination – the president engaged in a heated argument with some of them.
He was also said to have performed “worse than during the debate” and, according to one of the quoted participants, if there had not been an assassination attempt on Trump an hour later, 50 Democrats would have called for Biden to resign.
Media: Democratic leaders privately urge Biden to withdraw his candidacy
According to ABC News, the Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer had a “candid” private conversation with Biden at the president's vacation home in Rehoboth Beach over the weekend, during which he argued that it would be better for Biden to drop out of the presidential race.
A similar message was sent by the minority leader in the House of Representatives, Hakeem Jeffrieswho indicated that by staying in the race for the White House, Biden could hurt the electoral chances of Democratic congressional candidates. “Biden will see the whole house of cards collapse very soon,” a person who publicly defended Biden told the network after the debate.
Shortly after ABC News published, other American media reported similar information. The Washington Post reported that, in addition to Jeffries and Schumer, Biden was encouraged to end his candidacy by another person close to him, claiming that it was “the only way to preserve his legacy and save the country from another Trump term.”
Representatives for the politicians have not confirmed or denied the reports. A spokesman for Jeffries said it was “a private conversation that will remain private.” He also pointed to a letter the Democratic leader wrote after the call in which he said he “directly expressed the full range of views, honest perspectives and conclusions about the path forward” he heard from the Democratic lawmakers.
CNN reported that the former speaker of the House of Representatives was supposed to talk to Biden. Nancy Pelosi. President USA he was supposed to hear that polls show that he is not able to overcome Donald Trump and that if he continues to seek reelection, it could destroy Democrats' chances of winning the House elections in November. A Pelosi spokesman told CNN that she has been in California since Friday and has not spoken to Biden since then.
The American television portal claims, citing a close Biden advisor, that the president has recently softened his stance on withdrawing from the race. “He went from saying 'Kamala can't win' to 'Do you think Kamala' can win,” the source told CNN.
Democrats delay announcing presidential candidate
There is also a dispute within the party over when to formally choose a presidential candidate. The party's plan was to do so in a virtual vote before the convention, or even as early as this week.
This was allegedly due to a local law in Ohio that set a cutoff date for nominating a candidate before Aug. 7, the deadline for the Democratic convention beginning Aug. 19. Critics say that rule has been changed and the party does not have to rush. On Wednesday, Democrats said voting would not begin until the end of July.
The first national poll since the Trump assassination, commissioned by Reuters from Ipsos, suggests that the incident has not affected the voter sentiment, with Trump maintaining a 2 percentage point lead over Biden (47-45%), as he did before the debate.
Main image source: CAROLINE BREHMAN/PAP/EPA