WASHINGTON – Bernie Sanders Describes President Joe Biden’s Recent Decision debate performance as “painful”. In an interview, he says he is not confident that Biden can win this fall.
But the progressive senator from Vermont doesn’t want Biden to step aside.
Instead, Sanders, who was Biden’s main rival in the fight for the Democratic Party’s nomination in 2020, is calling on voters to embrace “maturity” as they consider their options this fall.
“A presidential election is not a Grammy contest for the best singer or artist. It’s about who has the best policies that impact our lives,” Sanders said. “I will do everything I can to get Biden re-elected.”
That’s putting your best face on it. Nearly a week after Biden’s disastrous debate performance, doubts about his ability to stay in the race are intensifying among worried Democrats. But there is also a growing sense that the party is stuck in a bad situation, with no clear solution, arrested in a primary process created to protect Biden with elected officials reluctant to say out loud what some say quietly.
Some allies, like Sanders, recognize Biden’s problems but contrast his policies and record with those of Republican Donald Trump. But many donors, strategists and party members want Biden to suspend his re-election campaign to avoid what they see as a certain defeat in November.
Representative. Lloyd Doggett of Texas on Tuesday became the first House Democrat to call for the president’s withdrawal, saying “too much is at stake” for Biden to stay in the race and lose to Trump.
“He has the opportunity to encourage a new generation of leaders from whom a candidate can be chosen to unite our country through an open and democratic process,” Doggett said in a written statement. “My decision to make these strong reservations public is not made lightly nor does it in any way diminish my respect for all that President Biden has achieved.”
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told MSNBC that she believes “it’s a legitimate question” whether the disruption to Biden’s performance is just “an episode or is it a condition.”
“When people ask that question, it’s a legitimate question — for both candidates,” Pelosi said.
Pelosi said she has not spoken to Biden since the debate, but emphasized that the president is “on top of his game as far as knowing the issues and what is at stake.”
In private, people close to Biden’s potential replacements — including California Governor Gavin Newsom, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Vice President Kamala Harris — are having informal conversations about possible next steps if Biden abruptly changes course. and walk away.
Those conversations include conversations about potential running mates, according to donors involved in the discussions. Names of possible vice presidential candidates that have emerged include Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and California Rep. Ro Khanna.
Each of the officials on those lists has publicly pledged support for Biden in recent days. And always defiant, Biden’s team downplayed the president’s political problems in a series of memos and private meetings with donors, strategists and party members.
“Voters are powerless,” said Nina Turner, national co-chair of Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign, who now fears the Democratic Party cannot win again with Biden as its candidate. “The decision is solely up to him.”
In the midst of such frustration, the main groups in Biden’s political coalition – which were already showing signs of wear and tear even before the debate – began to turn against each other.
Tim Miller, a prominent Biden supporter who previously worked for Republican political campaigns, has been attacked in recent days by pro-Biden activists. They posted family photos of him on social media after he raised concerns about Biden’s general election prospects.
In an interview, however, Miller said elected Democrats have told him privately that they share his concerns.
“To me, the only risk right now is everyone shutting up and getting in line,” Miller said. “The time is right to have an open conversation about what the way forward is. Otherwise, we will be on the path to another Donald Trump presidency.”
A handful of Republican leaders from the “Never Trump” camp met privately Monday with Biden campaign officials to encourage the president to drop out of the race.
Biden’s campaign issued a memo over the weekend claiming he had lost little support after the debate. A separate internal memo also argued that he would retain the support of many voters who had a negative reaction to his prime-time performance.
A CNN poll conducted by SSRS After the debate, it emerged that Biden’s favorability rating had not changed significantly, nor had the share of Americans who say they will vote for him in November. However, three-quarters of US voters – and more than half of Democratic voters – say the Democratic Party would have a better chance of winning the presidency with someone else at the top of the ticket.
At the same time, the president’s campaign announced a massive fundraiser for the month of June on Tuesday. Overall, the campaign raised $127 million last month, including $33 million on the day of the debate and in its aftermath, according to the campaign. The numbers cannot be verified until federal records are published at the end of the month.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison made clear Tuesday that party rules leave no room for a Plan B.
Biden secured nearly all of the delegates in the state-by-state primary process this spring. The party’s rules commit to reflecting “in good conscience” the wishes of the voters who chose Biden. A virtual roll call vote to formalize Biden’s status as a candidate is expected weeks before the party’s national convention.
“The primaries are over, and in every state the will of Democratic voters was clear: Joe Biden will be the Democratic Party nominee for president,” Harrison told the Associated Press. % of delegates are already committed to Joe Biden before our convention.”
But Biden’s allies in key states across the country recognize the fear spreading through their party’s ranks.
Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikki Fried said she worked to calm concerns about Biden’s mental acuity by sharing her personal experiences.
“I have been involved in meetings, conversations and close interactions with the president where we have been able to talk about important policy initiatives, but we have also been able to just have a general conversation, as if you were talking to your neighbor,” Fried said. “There has never been a time when I questioned his abilities to govern this country and to present the kind of energy and coalition that will be needed to win in November.”
Michigan Democratic Party Chairwoman Lavora Barnes said she spoke to volunteers Monday night and “yes, they asked questions” about Biden’s debate performance. But “we need to focus our conversations with our voters on the work the president has done in contrast to Donald Trump,” she said.
Vermont Democratic Sen. Peter Welch admitted that Biden’s debate performance intensified questions about the president’s age that are on the minds of “ordinary voters” and even “extremely vocal Biden supporters.”
“In the Biden campaign, they are acutely aware of this,” Welch said in an interview. “I thought it was a mistake for the Biden campaign to criticize people who started asking questions that the campaign itself is asking.”
However, Vermont’s other senator, Sanders, admitted that Biden’s path to re-election will not be easy.
“I wasn’t confident he could win before the debate,” Sanders told the AP. “What we need from the American people is maturity right now – and that is understanding that what’s important are the issues. And the difference between Trump and Biden: day and night.”
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Cappelletti reported from Lansing, Michigan. Associated Press writer Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux in Washington contributed to this report.
