Democratic congressman calls for Joe Biden to step aside after "disaster" debate performance
BOSTON – Massachusetts Congressman Seth Moulton said he decided to go public with his calls for President Joe Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee after Biden's "disaster" performance in the debate against former president Donald Trump.
Moulton first spoke out last week, calling in a statement for Biden to step aside.
Congressman Seth Moulton says Biden's debate was "disaster"
The Massachusetts Democrat said he first attempted to reach members of Biden's inner circle privately but "it obviously didn't work."
"I watched the debate. To be candid, I thought it was a disaster for the president. I think that was the reaction of most Americans who watched it. I came out of it saying we need to do something differently here," Moulton told WBZ-TV. "The next subsequent days had a lot of behind-the-scenes conversations with colleagues, fellow Democrats, constituents, leaders in Washington and really tried to quietly influence the president to step aside and let a new person who is better equipped to beat Donald Trump enter the race. When the quiet conversations didn't go anywhere, I decided it was time to go public with my concerns."
President Biden's first post-debate interview
In a Friday interview with ABC News, Biden said he will not step aside unless "the Lord Almighty comes down and tells me that." Biden's stance comes despite several polls following the debate showing that Trump would win the 2024 election.
"I think a lot of us who saw that interview are concerned that while it was a much better performance than the debate of course, he was rather dismissive of the concerns," Moulton said.
President Biden's legacy
Moulton said Biden taking a cognitive exam would not ease his worries, because his campaign schedule following the debate is "not the type of vigorous campaigning that we need from the president in order to come back from this deficit and ensure that he defeats Donald Trump decisively."
The congressman pointed to George Washington's legacy of stepping down rather than seeking another term as the country's first president.
"I think that can be President Biden's legacy as well. He defeated Donald Trump once and then he was willing to hand power over to a new generation of leaders. That's the kind of amazing legacy that a great president like Biden deserves," Moulton said. "At this point I'm not sure who's going to change his mind. But what I'm imploring the president to do is think yourself, Mr. President about what's best for America. Because this is not about you. It's about our country, and the future of our country for our kids."
On Friday, Massachusetts' Democratic governor Maura Healey said Biden should "carefully evaluate" staying in the race. Healey was one of 20 democratic governors who met with Biden at the White House last week.