Biden declines requests to withdraw from the presidential contest
US President Joe Biden declared on Friday that he would continue to run for president, rejecting the increasing Democratic party rebellion that suggested he would withdraw as early as this weekend.
“The decision is obvious, and the stakes are tremendous. The 81-year-old, who is in Covid seclusion, declared in a statement from his Delaware beach house that “together, we will win.”
As his doctor reported that the president was recovering from the illness’s symptoms, Biden continued, “I look forward to getting back on the campaign trail next week.”
However, Biden’s political situation seemed to be in far worse shape when two senators and ten more House Democrats officially urged him to withdraw from his race against Donald Trump in November.
Fears over Biden’s age and health were aroused three weeks ago after a dismal debate performance against Trump. He has already received calls to resign from over thirty House Democrats as well as four senators.
Actor George Clooney and other prominent backers, like Silicon Valley mogul Michael Moritz, have joined the chorus calling on Biden to step aside.
The walls seemed to be closing in with surveys indicating that Trump is headed for a return to the Oval Office, claims that prominent Democrats have also voiced reservations, and a drying up of money.
Although there was no firm agreement to leave the campaign, some members of Biden’s family have “discussed what an exit from his campaign might look like,” according to NBC News.
In the event that Biden withdraws, Vice President Kamala Harris, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination, will take over as the nominee if Biden does.
On Friday, she was having an emergency call with contributors.
In response to rumors that he would withdraw, Biden’s campaign insisted that despite some “slippage” in support, he remained the front-runner.
Campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon declared, “Absolutely the president’s in this race,” on MSNBC’s Morning Joe show. “Joe Biden is determined to defeat Donald Trump more than ever.”
“Donald Trump’s dark vision for the future is not who we are as Americans,” Biden said in a statement criticizing his rival’s speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Thursday.
However, there has been a clear divide between the two camps, with Trump being greeted with success by the newly united Republicans following his survival of an attempted murder on Saturday.
The last 48 hours have seen a dramatic increase in the amount of pressure on Biden due to rumors that legislative leaders,
former president Barack Obama, and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had all voiced concerns behind closed doors.
Leading House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries was evasive on Friday, claiming that Biden’s “decision to pursue the ticket that exists right now is the ticket we can win on.”
Given media rumors that the US president is spending his time holed up in Rehoboth Beach consulting with family members and contemplating his future, this could be the most momentous weekend of Biden’s term.
In order to provide some dignity to what would be a historically tardy decision by a sitting US president to not run for office,
the NBC report suggested that it could entail a “carefully calculated plan” to step aside depending on his own schedule.
In addition, Biden’s choice to resign less than four months before the election would have to take into account the need to keep the Democratic Party orderly in regards to his replacement as nominee.
In 2020, Biden defeated Trump and became the oldest president of the United States ever.
