US President Joe Biden on Friday pledged to stay in the White House race, defying a growing Democratic Party revolt that raised speculation he could bow out as soon as this weekend.
“The stakes are high, and the choice is clear. Together, we will win,” the 81-year-old said in a statement from the Delaware beach home where he is in isolation after contracting COVID-19.
“I look forward to getting back on the campaign trail next week,” Biden added, as his doctor said the president was bouncing back from the symptoms of the disease.
Photo: AP
However, Biden’s political health appeared to be in far worse shape, with 10 more US House of Representative Democrats and two US senators joining the list of lawmakers publicly calling on him to quit November’s election clash with former US president and Republican Party presidential candidate Donald Trump.
A disastrous debate performance against Trump three weeks ago triggered panic about Biden’s age and health. More than 30 House Democrats and four senators have now called on him to drop out.
A key donor, Silicon Valley investor Michael Moritz, also joined other supporters such as actor George Clooney who want Biden to make way.
“Sadly, President Biden has a choice — vanity or virtue,” the New York Times quoted Moritz as saying.
US Vice President Kamala Harris, the front-runner to succeed him as the Democratic presidential candidate if Biden does drop out, was holding an emergency call with donors on Friday.
However, Biden’s campaign pushed back against reports that he would bow out, saying that while there had been some “slippage” in support, he was still the best candidate.
“Absolutely the president’s in this race,” campaign chairwoman Jen O’Malley Dillon told MSNBC’s Morning Joe program. “Joe Biden is more committed than ever to beat Donald Trump.”
Biden’s statement blasted his rival’s speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Thursday, saying that “Donald Trump’s dark vision for the future is not who we are as Americans.”
The pressure on Biden has soared in the last 48 hours, with reports that former US president Barack Obama, former House speaker Nancy Pelosi and the party’s congressional leaders had all expressed concerns behind the scenes.
Top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries was evasive on Friday, saying that the “ticket that exists right now is the ticket we can win on,” but saying it was Biden’s “decision to make.”
The scene could now be set for the most crucial weekend of Biden’s presidency, with media speculation that the US leader is using his time hunkered down in Rehoboth Beach to consult family members and mull over the path ahead.
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