WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s disastrous debate performance has reverberated throughout the Democratic Party, forcing lawmakers to grapple with a crisis that could upend the presidential election and change the course of American history.
The Democratic president has signaled he has no intention of dropping out of the race against Donald Trump, even as the debate has been tardy and uneven, with questions about Biden’s age and suitability as president coming to the fore. But as Democrats argue that the stakes in the election are high — and that nothing less than the very foundations of American democracy itself are at stake — they are wrestling with how to deal with the 81-year-old who is supposed to lead their party.
This is how the Democrats are dealing with the consequences of the debate:
hit the alarm
Texas Democrat Lloyd Doggett on Tuesday became the first sitting Democrat in Congress to call on Biden to drop out of the race. In a statement, he praised Biden but said he has “an opportunity to encourage a new generation of leaders from which a candidate can be chosen to unite our country through an open, democratic process.”
“Because President Biden, unlike Trump, has always been committed first and foremost to our country and not to himself, I am confident he will make the painful and difficult decision to withdraw. I respectfully urge him to do so,” Doggett said.
A number of other Democrats in Congress have been tiptoeing in recent days to voice their obvious concerns – not only about Biden’s performance during Thursday night’s 90-minute debate, but also about the transparency Biden’s team has offered about his mental health.
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., told a local CBS-affiliated television station this week that he was “appalled” by both Biden’s performance and Trump’s falsehoods during the debate.
“People want to be sure that this campaign is ready to win,” Whitehouse said. “That the president and his team are being open with us about his condition – that this was a real anomaly.”
Representative Jamie Raskin, a prominent Democrat from Maryland, said on MSNBC: “There are very honest, serious and thorough conversations happening at every level of our party.”
Raskin said Democrats need Biden at the “center” of their campaign to bolster the argument that the Republican Party under Trump is drifting toward authoritarianism, but he also raised the possibility that Biden might not continue as a presidential candidate.
Some fear that Biden’s weaknesses could dampen enthusiasm among potential voters and create a ripple effect that hurts Democrats trying to hold on to their narrow majority in the Senate and regain control of the House. Democrats sitting on lower ballots are already confident they can outperform Biden in swing races, but if a immense number of voters reject Biden, it could affect them, too.
Democratic Rep. Mike Quigley of Illinois told CNN on Tuesday that he wanted Biden to recognize “how much this impacts not only his campaign, but all the other campaigns in November.”
Support for Biden
As Biden’s family urges him to stay in the race, attention is turning to senior Democratic lawmakers who could potentially persuade the president to withdraw his nomination. So far, Democratic leaders have largely backed Biden in public statements.
“There has been no discussion among leadership about anything other than making sure that we continue to present the American people with a compelling vision for the future on the important economic issues,” House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries told reporters at an event Monday at Pittsburgh International Airport.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, wrote after last week’s debate on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that it had shown voters they had a choice between “four more years of progress or four more years of attacks on our fundamental rights and our democracy.”
Biden plans to speak with congressional leaders this week, the White House said Tuesday. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Tuesday that she respects the opinions and thoughts of the party members involved, adding: “That’s what sets this party apart from the other side.”
Many Biden allies accused the media of focusing too much on Biden’s mental abilities, arguing that the focus should instead be on Trump’s past, which saw him refuse to acknowledge the outcome of the 2020 election and repeatedly make false statements.
Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Texas Democrat who is part of Biden’s campaign committee, acknowledged that the debate did not meet her expectations, but added: “I think there needs to be a real discussion about the things that Donald Trump has said. It is beyond abhorrent.”
Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia of California, who was one of Biden’s surrogates at the debate, dismissed the concerns.
“We are 100 percent behind Joe Biden,” he said on Friday. “Clearly, end of story. He is our candidate. So everything else is just political talk.”
A feeling for it
The debate breathed up-to-date life into an election campaign that had previously been characterized by few surprises. Voters knew both Biden and Trump and had already chosen between the two in 2020.
Still, many Democrats in the House of Representatives were left with a flood of questions to deal with on Friday morning after the debate. Some said it was nothing more than a bad night for Biden, while others are watching closely to see how voters react and whether Biden can make a quick political recovery.
Representative James Clyburn, a South Carolina Democrat who helped Biden win the Democratic nomination in 2020, urged his party last week to “stay the course” and “relax.”
On Tuesday, Clyburn still supported Biden for president, but told MSNBC that “Biden may change his mind.” Clyburn added that he would support Vice President Kamala Harris if Biden withdraws his candidacy.
Clyburn and others like former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) recommend that Biden prove to the American people that he is ready for another four years in office by facing hard interviews – something he has rarely done in recent years. Biden will give an interview with ABC later in the week, his first since the debate.
Both Clyburn and Pelosi told MSNBC on Tuesday afternoon that they had not spoken directly with Biden since the debate, but Pelosi stressed that the president was “at his best in terms of knowing the issues and what’s at stake.”
She called on both Biden and Trump to undergo tests to check their health and mental state.
“I think it’s a fair question whether this is an episode or a condition. If people are asking that question, it’s a fair question — of both candidates,” Pelosi said.
Meanwhile, rank-and-file lawmakers are watching to see how exit polls capture the impact and whether it will affect post-election voting. For months, vulnerable Democrats in the House have been distancing themselves from some of Biden’s policies, and that phenomenon could intensify after the debate.
Representative Jared Golden, a moderate Democrat from Maine, was already looking for ways to persuade potential Trump voters to support him.
“Although I don’t plan to vote for him, Donald Trump will win,” Golden said in an editorial in the Bangor Daily News. “And I’m OK with that.”
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Associated Press writer Farnoush Amiri contributed to this report.
