Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) became the first sitting House Democrat to go public with a call for President Biden to step aside as party standard bearer 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 him on the ticket threatens the possibility of Donald Trump winning.
“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,” he said in a statement.
“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.”
An outcry of Democrats have gone public with their concerns after Biden’s debate performance last week, in which he froze up on stage at times and appeared to lose his train of thought.
Biden is expected to be virtually coronated as the Democratic nominee for president over the coming weeks ahead of the Democratic National Convention in August.
This is a developing story, please refresh for updates.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/M5XB4JQ7IZEL3ESV5VXQRHZ55Y.jpg "Who could replace Biden as the Democratic nominee? – WPXI")
