Out Congress members disagree whether Biden should drop out or stay in the race

Following President Joe Biden’s closely watched news conference at the conclusion of the NATO summit in Washington last Thursday, Rep. Eric Sorenson (D-IL) became the third out member of Congress to call on Biden to end his reelection campaign.

“In 2020, Joe Biden ran for President with the purpose of putting country over party. Today, I am asking him to do that again,” Sorenson shared in a statement. “I am hopeful President Biden will step aside in his campaign for President.”

Related:

Lesbian congresswoman Angie Craig calls on Joe Biden to step down

Two other LGBTQ+ elected Democrats are expressing similar concerns about Biden.

In an interview with local news in his district the following Friday morning, Sorenson said, “We need the next person to be able to give us that feeling that our best days are ahead. And right now, I think that’s going to be someone different.”

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Among the 12 out members of the House and Senate — all caucusing with Democrats — three have publicly called on Biden to withdraw from the race following his disastrous debate performance on June 27. As of this writing, 20 Democratic Congress members have asked Biden to step back.

On Saturday, Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota became the first gay rep to call on Biden to end his reelection bid.

“This is not a decision I’ve come to lightly, but there is simply too much at stake to risk a second Donald Trump presidency,” Craig, who’s in a tough reelection fight of her own, said in a statement posted to X. “That’s why I respectfully call on President Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee for a second term as President and allow for a new generation of leaders to step forward.”

The next day, Rep. Mark Takano of California said Biden should drop his bid. Takano made this comment while on a Zoom meeting with other senior Democratic leaders. Takano, the Chair of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said it’s evident Biden “is not the best person to carry the Democratic message,” according to CBS News. Takano hasn’t gone public with his concerns, nor has he denied them.

Other out lawmakers have tip-toed to edge of asking Biden to drop out, stayed silent on the issue, or expressed their full-throated support.

Last Thursday morning, ahead of the president’s press conference, New York Rep. Ritchie Torres described “a continuing pattern of denial and self-delusion” in the Biden campaign in a post on X.

“The President did not just have one ‘bad debate.’ The reality we saw with our own lying eyes is evidence of a deeper challenge,” he wrote. “The notion that the President is going to be saved by this interview or that press conference misses the forest for trees.”

Rep. Becca Balint of Vermont said in a written statement last Tuesday that she “heard overwhelmingly from Vermonters that they would like to see President Biden step aside in this race” while she was home over the past week. However, she didn’t explicitly call on Biden to stand down.

Rep. Chris Pappas of New Hampshire called his constituents “disappointed with what they saw” in the debate and added, “It’s up to President Biden to answer what kind of path he can be on for the future to restore confidence or to pass the torch” in an interview with WMUR.

Out member Rep. Sharice Davids of Kansas avoided passing judgment on by Biden by putting the focus on Trump.

Her spokesman said, “While Rep. Davids is focused on helping Kansas families, what we saw [at the debate] is that Donald Trump is still focused on spreading lies and extreme measures to rip away reproductive health care for millions of Americans.”

One of Biden’s biggest boosters in the House has been Rep. Robert Garcia of California, who told The New Yorker last Thursday, “Joe Biden is here to fight, and to fight hard, all the way through November.” He added, “We’ve seen Joe Biden deliver for the American people, over and over again, especially in the past few days. Trump is insane and crazy.”

In the upper congressional chamber, California Sen. Laphonza Butler joined Biden and Sens. Raphael Warnock (GA) and Cory Booker (NJ) for a call to the Congressional Black Caucus with a show of support, although she hasn’t addressed Biden’s troubles publicly. So far, no Black Congressional Democrat has called on the president to step aside.

Retiring bisexual Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) has made no public comments about Biden’s fate.

Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin campaigned in her home state with Biden and fellow out Wisconsin lawmaker Mark Pocan shortly after the debate week. Both were supportive of the president, as well as mindful of their constituents.

“I have heard a lot of input from voters, things they’ve been expressing, and I pass those things off to the White House,” Baldwin told reporters. She said she’ll be “fighting for the entire Democratic ticket,” but also, “it’s his decision.”

In a speech on Friday during Biden’s visit, Pocan laid out the choice voters face right now.

“Look, Joe Biden gets it done,” he said. “Donald Trump gets felonies.”

Then, he asked the crowd at a Madison middle school, “Are you ready to do all you can to make sure that this country survives a great attack from a corrupt demagogue and a right-wing that wants to fundamentally change our nation?”

“It’s really going to be up to us,” Pocan said.

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