Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said Sunday that Vice President Kamala Harris could “overwhelmingly” beat former President Donald Trump, but President Joe Biden must decide whether to remain in the race as the Democratic Party’s nominee amid the disastrous reaction. discuss performance.
Asked about polls that showed Harris would surpass Trump if she replaced Biden, Schiff said he thought she would be a “phenomenal president” during an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.”
“I think she has the experience, the judgment and the leadership ability to be an extraordinary president,” Schiff told moderator Kristen Welker.
Pressed again by Welker about whether Harris could win “in a landslide” against Trump, Schiff said he believes “she could very well win in a landslide” before emphasizing that it is up to Biden to decide the fate of his presidential campaign.
“Before we make a decision about who else it should be, the president needs to decide if it’s him,” he said.
Asked whether Biden should drop out and pass the torch to Harris, Schiff again argued that it was up to Biden to make that decision.
“I think Biden should take time to talk to people outside of his immediate circle, talk to people he respects, people with objectivity, people with distance, and make the right decision for the country,” he said. “And I am confident that Joe Biden has always made the fundamental distinction between himself and Donald Trump.”
Schiff also raised concerns about the president’s stance against Trump in the general election, noting the president’s age.
“Given Biden’s incredible record and Trump’s terrible record, he should wipe the floor with Donald Trump,” Schiff said. “It shouldn’t be even close and the reason it’s close is the age of the president.”
Schiff also said Biden’s ABC News interview, which aired Friday, was not enough to calm Democrats’ growing concerns about his mental fitness.
“The interview did not put an end to the concerns. No interview will do that,” he said. “And what I think the president needs to decide is: Can he set these concerns aside? Can he demonstrate to the American people that what happened on the debate stage was an aberration, that he can and will defeat Donald Trump.”
Pressed on whether he thinks Biden should get a cognitive test after refusing to commit to taking one during his interview with ABC News, Schiff said he would be happy if Biden and Trump were willing to get a test.
“I think, frankly, that a test would show Donald Trump as having a serious illness of one kind or another,” he said. “But ultimately the decision will come down to what Joe Biden thinks is best and if his decision is to run, then run hard and beat that son of a bitch. And if his decision is to pass the torch, then the president must do everything in his power to make this other candidate successful.”
Schiff’s responses come after Biden’s ABC News interview did little to assuage the concerns of Democrats, who have called for Biden to resign following his poor debate performance last month. Front-line Democrats who spoke to NBC News say they fear his debate performance has done irreversible damage to his candidacy.
In his interview with ABC News, the president sought to ensure that he remains the best candidate to defeat Donald Trump in November, arguing that he had a “bad night” as he tried to quell growing concerns about his age and mental fitness following his death. . poor performance in the debate.
Biden continued to publicly defy calls from some Democrats to drop out of the race, repeatedly saying that only “the Lord Almighty” could convince him to end his bid for a second term.
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
