WASHINGTON – The Congress men Democrats are considering at a meeting on Tuesday whether US President Joe Biden will Biden must remain in the race for re-election after the disastrous debate against Republican Donald Trump.
The 81-year-old president will meanwhile focus on bolstering his international reputation with a speech at NATO’s 75th anniversary summit in Washington.
House Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries met with colleagues who fear the chaos sparked by the debate, in which Biden repeatedly lost track of what he was saying and appeared confused, could jeopardize their seats in the November election.
Jeffries, who said Monday he still supports Biden, rallied the entire Democratic caucus.
The tension is palpable. According to American media, phones are banned to avoid real-time leaks.
Democrats divided after debate
Senate Democrats will also debate Biden’s nomination at a regular luncheon on Tuesday.
So far, most Democrats have publicly backed Biden, but the party remains divided after the catastrophic debate watched by some 51 million Americans.
“He just needs to resign,” House Democrat Mike Quigley told CNN on his way to the meeting.
But Jerry Nadler, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, backed Biden despite having been reported in the press earlier this month to say he should make way for another candidate.
“He said he will continue (in the race), he is our candidate and we are all going to support him, hopefully we all support him,” he told reporters.
The crisis has raised eyebrows within the party with less than four months to go before the elections.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been in a more difficult political environment in my life,” Senator John Hickenlooper acknowledged at a working breakfast for the NATO summit.
Parkinson
Biden reiterated Monday that he is determined to stay in the race and challenged disaffected Democrats to run at the party’s convention in August.
The oldest president in US history justified his poor performance in the debate, during which he gasped several times, by saying it was due to a “bad night” caused by a cold and jet lag from overseas travel, even though he had rested after the tour and took six days off from his duties to prepare for the debate.
The White House also weighed in. His personal physician said Monday that Biden was examined by a Parkinson’s specialist only as part of routine neurological testing during his annual physical.
Biden will address NATO leaders at 5:00 p.m. (9:00 p.m. GMT) in a speech closely watched both at home and by international allies who fear Trump’s return to the White House.
Biden still fails to convince
So far, Biden’s efforts have failed to convince the editorial board of The New York Times.
In a scathing article, the board of directors said Democrats “must tell him the plain truth.”
“They need to tell him that his challenge threatens to hand Mr Trump the victory. They need to tell him that he is making a fool of himself and endangering his legacy,” the paper insists.
Biden continues to lag in the polls and media attention is now focused on his weaknesses, rather than his rival, Trump.
Trump himself broke days of silence since the debate, telling Fox News on Monday that he believes Biden will withstand the pressure and stay in the race.
“He has an ego and does not want to resign,” said the former president.
Source: With information from AFP
