On Tuesday, Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) became the first elected Democrat to publicly call for President Joe Biden to step down as the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee for president.
“My decision to make these strong reservations public is not done lightly nor does it in any way diminish my respect for all that President Biden has achieved,” Doggett said in a statement. “Recognizing that, unlike Trump, President Biden’s first commitment has always been to our country, not himself, I am hopeful that he will make the painful and difficult decision to withdraw. I respectfully call on him to do so.”
Doggett is the first elected lawmaker to pile on to the calls from liberals in the media and activist class for Biden to step aside after the president appeared to cognitively struggle in the first presidential debate with former President Donald Trump. The Texas representative said Biden failed to “effectively defend his many accomplishments.”
“I represent the heart of a congressional district once represented by Lyndon Johnson,” Doggett added. “Under very different circumstances, he made the painful decision to withdraw. President Biden should do the same.”
Doggett may be the first Democratic lawmaker to come out in favor of replacing Biden as the nominee, but he may not be the last.
Just before Doggett’s statement, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), formerly the speaker of the house, told MSNBC that she believes, “it is a legitimate question,” whether or not Biden’s debate performance was just “an episode or is this a condition.”
“When people ask that question, it’s legitimate — of both candidates,” Pelosi added.
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Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), a major Biden ally in the 2020 election cycle that helped Biden win South Carolina on his way to the nomination, told MSNBC that he “will support” Vice President Kamala Harris if Biden “were to step aside.”
Rep. Jaime Raskin (D-MD) told the same network that, “whether he’s the candidate or someone else is the candidate, he is going to be the keynote speaker at our convention.”
“He will be the figure that we rally around to move forward,” Raskin added.
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