Four senior House Dems—including Jerry Nadler—call for Biden to step down

Four senior House Democrats have called on incumbent President Joe Biden to drop out of the presidential race. The Democrats include Reps. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), Adam Smith (D-WA), Mark Takano (D-CA), and Joseph Morelle (D-NY).

The move from the four lawmakers comes as pressure has grown on Biden to step out of the race. Pundits, donors and other Democrats have all stepped in to say that Biden should withdraw from the race. Some have suggested a "blitz primary" in advance of the August Democratic National Convention while others have said simply that he should let VP Kamala Harris take the reins of power, since she is second in command.



According to the New York Post, the four lawmakers held a private meeting with two-dozen ranking House committee members, House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-MA), and Democrat Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-CA).

The four Democrats reportedly expressed their concerns to House minority leadership without the leaders weighing in on the matter. The concerns from Nadler, Smith, Takano, and Morelle, like many others, stem from Biden's recent poor debate performance against Donald Trump.

Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) has already attempted to get others together to oppose Biden in the 2024 election. Several Democratic megadonors have become skittish about supporting Biden come November. Some of Biden’s most ardent backers in the media as well as online have also started to pull away and The New York Times has published many columns and articles about the need for Biden to step away.

Alan Clendenin, the longest-serving member of the Democratic National Committee from Florida said in a statement on Sunday, “The future of the Republic we know is in imminent danger and we must hold our country above our party or any one individual. I believe it is in the best interest of our country and the world that President Joe Biden step aside and allow Vice President Kamala Harris to carry forward his agenda as our Democratic nominee.”

Despite the rounds of calls from lawmakers, media pundits, donors, and other Democrats, Biden has been adamant that he is not stepping aside. The White House released a letter on Monday morning, demanding that Democrats on Capitol Hill unify around him in order to beat Trump in the election.

Biden’s chances of winning over Trump, however, have gotten slimmer according to a number of polls that were taken after the debate. In a national poll from the Wall Street Journal after the debate, Trump led Biden by 6 points nationally. Biden said he doesn't believe those polls and has committed to staying in the race.