President Joe Biden’s debate performance against his opponent in the US presidential election billed for November continues to unsettle the Democratic Party and pressure is increasingly being mounted on Biden to throw in the towel.
Biden fumbled with words and appeared disoriented in Thursday night’s clash in Atlanta with former President Donald Trump. Though Mr. Biden has assured his supporters that he is capable of doing the the job, there are loud calls for him to step down as he had demonstrated that he is not physically fit for the task and would only be handing Mr. Trump victory on a platter of gold.
A congressman told Matthew Yglesias, a US political blogger: “I think the president has one week to prove he is not dead.”
David Plouffe, who managed Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign, told CNN: “It’s kind of a Defcon 1 moment…they are three years apart, but they seemed about 30 years apart tonight.”
David Axelrod, another Obama adviser, said: “There are going to be discussions about whether he should continue.”
Mark Buell, a well-known Democratic donor, said: “Do we have time to put somebody else in there?”
America’s most influential newspaper, The New York Times, in its editorial Friday called on Biden to step down from the race.
Describing Biden as “the shadow of a great public servant,” the newspaper’s editorial board — which is separate from its newsroom — said Thursday’s debate between the president and Trump proved the 81-year-old “failed his own test.”
His determination to run again is a “reckless gamble,” it said, adding: “the greatest public service Mr. Biden can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election.”
All the news you need...
