Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) on Thursday said President Joe Biden should drop his reelection bid, making him the third elected Democrat to say the president should step aside.
“President Biden has done enormous service to our country, but now is the time for him to follow in one of our founding father, George Washington’s, footsteps and step aside to let new leaders rise up and run against Donald Trump,” Moulton told Boston radio station WBUR on Thursday .
Moulton followed Reps. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) and Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) in saying that Biden should bow out of the presidential race.
The calls for a new candidate came after Biden’s weak debate performance last week, in which he lost his train of thought as he spoke, gave garbled answers to some questions and left his mouth hanging open when he wasn’t speaking. At 81, Biden is the oldest president in U.S. history.
President Trump lied throughout the debate and also gave irrelevant and incoherent answers, but his delivery was much stronger. Even though Trump is 78, surveys have shown the age question is a major disadvantage for Biden.
Several other Democrats have come close to saying Biden should step down. Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.), for instance, said Wednesday that the debate “brought up questions... that I don’t think it’s prudent to dismiss.”
The White House claimed Biden had a cold during the debate, but Biden himself said he was exhausted from recent international travel. Biden reportedly told Democratic governors on Wednesday that he needs more sleep and less work at night.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said this week that Biden could bolster confidence in his cognitive abilities by doing several interviews with journalists. To that end, the president is sitting down with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos for an interview that will air Friday evening.
It’s possible more Democrats will call on Biden to step aside. Several draft letters to that effect are reportedly circulating among House lawmakers.
In an earlier statement on Wednesday, Moulton laid out his concerns about Biden without fully saying he should drop out.
“The unfortunate reality is that the status quo will likely deliver us President Trump,” Moulton said. “When your current strategy isn’t working, it’s rarely the right strategy to double down. President Biden is not going to get younger.”
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