Conor here: The group making the effort to oust Biden, “Pass the Light, Joe,” is described only on its website as “a network of Democratic activists, organizers, and voters united by the belief that nothing is more important. than making sure that the Democrats have a ticket that can defeat Donald Trump.” “I wonder how the Democrats will try to keep this way of doing business in the next election.
By Jake Johnson, senior editor and staff writer for Common Dreams.
US President Joe Biden on Friday presented a defiant response to those within the Democratic Party urging him to leave the 2024 race, portraying his disastrous debate against Donald Trump as a “bad episode” instead of validating long-standing concerns about his age and his age. mental health.
At a rally in Wisconsin and in a later sit-down interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos, Biden admitted his debate was not good but insisted he was still in the race, a message that came as Democratic activists and organizers launched a campaign to woo supporters. the president to step aside in order to ensure Trump’s defeat in November.
“I don’t think there’s anyone better suited to be president or win this race than me,” Biden said Friday, downplaying recent polling data that shows him trailing Trump more than other Democratic contenders, including Vice President Kamala Harris.
Asked how he would feel if he stayed in the race and Trump — a would-be activist planning a devastating attack on basic liberties and the world — won another four years in the White House, Biden suggested he would be at peace “as long as I gave it my all.”
“That’s what this is all about,” the president said.
Hours before the ABC News interview, a network of Democratic lobbyists, activists and voters came together to launch the “Pass the Light” campaign in a concerted effort to force Biden to “make good” on his 2020 promise to be a “transformational” president.
“President Joe Biden has achieved great things. His administration has led us out of this pandemic and is rebuilding our economy, resisting corporate greed, taking urgent climate action, and much more—inside, he is arguably the most successful Democratic president in generations,” the campaign website said. .
“All of that — and more — will be lost if Donald Trump takes the presidency,” the website continues. “Democrats need a very strong ticket to increase our chances of winning in November. It’s become abundantly clear, based on both long-term polling and recent debate, that the Democrats’ current ticket is not the strongest we can put forward. “
The campaign includes an appeal to members of the Democratic Congress and messengers at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) to join calls for the president to resign.
Today Democrats across the country are launching a grassroots campaign to name Biden #PassTheTorch, step aside as the nominee and support a candidate better able to beat Trump. Follow the campaign on @PassTheTorch24 and sign our petition to
– Aaron Regunberg (@AaronRegunberg) July 5, 2024
So far, five Democratic lawmakers — Reps. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), Mike Quigley (D-Ill.), and Angie Craig (D-Minn.)—urged Biden to let him stop. out of the race but it is expected that many will do this in the coming days as the group conference in August approaches.
The Washington Post reported on Friday that Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) is “trying to rally a group of Democratic senators to ask President Biden to drop out of the presidential race.” Earlier in the week, Reuters reported that “there are 25 Democratic members of the House of Representatives who are preparing to ask Biden to step down if he appears to be wavering in the coming days.”
Major Democratic donors, on the other hand, “made many efforts to pressure” Biden to drop out of the race, according to the New York Times.
“Their group is working to raise up to $100 million to fund an escrow fund, called the Next Generation PAC, that will be used to support a successor,” the Times reported. “If Mr. Biden doesn’t step aside, the money could be used to help down-ballot voters, according to people close to the effort.”
But Biden still has the support of top Democrats in Congress, with both Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (DN.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (DN.Y.) backing the president after the debate.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.), the front-runner in the upper house, also refused to join calls for Biden to drop his re-election bid.
“He’s not a debater, he’s not really a good speaker,” Sanders told Semafor. People will just say: OK, you know what? Yes, he is old. Yes, he doesn’t talk like he should. But you are voting for a person whose policies will affect your life.”
“Biden is the candidate,” the senator said. “I suspect that he is the one who will run for election. I will do everything in my power to get him elected.”
House progressives, too, have so far not supported the push for Biden to step down and pave the way for someone else to be elected.
“There was no outrage from Squad or other members of Congress known to be progressive activists,” said Slate’s Alexander Samson on Saturday. “The reason is the question of whether Biden should run the internecine war again within the middle wing of the party. Joe Biden, in his long, decades-long career, has always been a man in the middle, if not on the right, of the Democratic Alliance.”
“Now many of the same leaders who previously wanted Biden are surprised by his ability to win the election,” Samson wrote. “It is not good for the members of the Squad to get involved in trouble when there are public discussions that are already sour.”
The Times reported late Friday that Biden’s conversation with Stephanopoulos appeared to have done little to change the minds of people on both sides of the question.
“A number of current and former Democratic officials who called on Mr. Biden to end his re-election campaign said the interview did little, or nothing, to address their concerns,” the Times noted. “Loyal supporters of the president’s re-election campaign also took to social media, once again declaring their support for Mr. Biden.”
“Some Democrats expressed concern about the president’s performance, but they did not go so far as to say that Mr.
Doggett, who was the first congressional Democrat to urge Biden to step down, told CNN after Biden’s Friday interview that “the need for him to step down is more urgent tonight than when I called him on Tuesday.”
The Texas Democrat warned that “every day he’s delaying” quitting “makes it more difficult for a new person to get on board to defeat Donald Trump.”
Biden, Doggett added, “doesn’t want his legacy to be that he gave our country to a dictator.”