Rep. Lloyd Doggett first House Dem to go public with calls for Biden to drop out post-debate
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) became the first sitting House Democrat to go public Tuesday with a call for President Biden to step aside as the presumptive party nominee in the aftermath of last week’s debate.
Doggett, 77, lauded Biden’s track record as commander-in-chief but stressed that “many Americans have indicated dissatisfaction with their choices in this election” and implied that keeping the president on the ticket raises the chances of Donald Trump winning a second term.
“I represent the heart of a congressional district once represented by Lyndon Johnson. Under very different circumstances, he made the painful decision to withdraw. President Biden should do the same,” Doggett said.
In 1968, Johnson opted not to seek the Democratic nomination amid widespread dissatisfaction over the war in Vietnam, thrusting the party into a turbulent primary and Chicago convention at which then-Vice President Hubert Humphrey secured the nomination before losing to Republican Richard Nixon.
“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. 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,” Doggett went on.
Doggett conceded that “I had hoped that the debate would provide some momentum to change that.”
“It did not.”
An growing number of Democrats have gone public with their concerns after Biden’s debate performance last week, in which he repeatedly froze up on stage and lost his train of thought.
Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC), a close Biden confidante, added to the growing chorus on Tuesday afternoon by declaring his “support” for Vice President Kamala Harris if Biden did drop out of the race but adding he preferred a “Biden-Harris” 2024 ticket.
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“I will support her if he were to step aside,” said Clyburn, whose endorsement of Biden in 2020 helped him win the crucial South Carolina Democratic primary and propelled him to the nomination.
“This party should not, in any way, do anything to work around Ms. Harris,” he added. “We should do everything we can to bolster her whether she’s in second place or at the top of the ticket.”
Consternation over Biden’s age had long haunted the president, but after the debate, Democrats’ unease over his fitness for office reached a fever pitch.
What to know about the calls for President Biden to drop out of the 2024 race:
- President Biden’s poor performance in the first 2024 presidential debate left some Democrats unsure of his fitness for office and future as the party’s candidate.
- More than a dozen congressional Democrats have joined in calling for Biden’s exit from the race. Former Biden supporter George Clooney echoed these calls in an op-ed published in the New York Times just weeks after he helped lead a record-breaking fundraiser for the Democrat.
- Democratic voters have continued to raise concerns about Biden’s nomination since the debate, with speculations and suggestions for replacement nominees running rampant.
- Biden’s former running mate Barack Obama has reportedly been trying to pressure him to drop out, and had prior knowledge of Clooney’s op-ed. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi allegedly told Biden he could not beat former President Donald Trump this time around.
- As the Democratic National Convention approaches, California delegates for the Democratic Party are reportedly in disarray as debate over the president’s chances of re-election threatens to tear the party apart.
- However, the Biden campaign has denied any plans for Biden to bow out and for Kamala Harris to step in as the Democratic nominee. Sources close to the president believe he might not be willing to drop out, while other sources claim he is “receptive” to giving up on a second term.
“Our overriding consideration must be who has the best hope of saving our democracy from an authoritarian takeover by a criminal and his gang. Too much is at stake to risk a Trump victory — too great a risk to assume that what could not be turned around in a year, what was not turned around in the debate, can be turned around now,” Doggett added.
Doggett credited Biden, saying he “saved our democracy by delivering us from Trump in 2020,” but fretted that the Supreme Court’s recent decision on presidential immunity raises the stakes.
“Trump, newly empowered with immunity, could usher America into a long, dark, authoritarian era unchecked by either the courts or a submissive Republican Congress,” he added.
A former Texas Supreme Court justice, Doggett has represented the Lone Star State in the House since 1995, representing a district that covers much of the state capitol, Austin.
The Post contacted the Biden-Harris campaign for comment.