How concern is growing within the Democratic Party around Joe Biden’s health

For the first time on Tuesday, a Democratic congressman openly called on the outgoing president to withdraw his candidacy, following his criticized performance during the debate against Donald Trump.

Concern is growing among Democrats. Less than a week after the debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump on June 27, more and more voices are being raised to question the merits of the incumbent leader’s candidacy in November’s presidential election. The 81-year-old Democrat’s slowness, his stare into space and his incomplete sentences have reawakened fears about his health, which have haunted his campaign for months.

After his entourage explained his poor performance by a “bad evening” and one “common cold”Joe Biden put forward a new justification on Tuesday, July 2. According to him, he was not “not very smart” having “traveled around the world many times” before his duel with Donald Trump. His trips to France and Italy at the beginning of June caused great fatigue, to the point of “almost falling asleep on stage”, he said. Although occasional, Joe Biden’s episodes of confusion have been more frequent lately, according to members of his entourage, interviewed by the New York Times.

“Joe Biden is our candidate, we beat Donald Trump once and we will beat him again”his vice president, Kamala Harris, told CBS News on Tuesday. However, 56% of Democratic voters now believe their side has a better chance of winning by nominating another candidate, according to a poll released Tuesday by CNN..

How are elected Democrats dealing with this new situation? Some are publicly questioning Joe Biden’s ability to remain in the running for the supreme office. Former Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, an influential figure in the Democratic camp, agreed that he was “legitimate” to wonder if Joe Biden’s attitude during the debate was just“a simple episode” or revealed a health problem. The Californian, loyal to the president, called on him to multiply interviews and to show “the real Joe”. “Horrified” With Joe Biden’s performance having led to Rhode Island Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse asking for reassurance “that it was an anomaly and not his way of being these days,” reports the New York Times.

“We have to be honest with ourselves: it wasn’t just a horrible night,” has already said Democratic Representative Mike Quigley of Illinois on CNN. In his eyes, Joe Biden’s decision to remain ““It has an impact not only on who will occupy the White House for the next four years, but also on who will be in the Senate, who will be in the House of Representatives.” “It will have consequences for decades to come,” he insisted.

Texas Congressman Lloyd Doggett went further, clearly calling on Joe Biden to step down. “Unlike Donald Trump, President Biden’s first commitment has always been to his country, not to himself. I hope he makes the painful and difficult decision to step down, he wrote. I respectfully ask him to do so.” A call supported by Democratic Representative Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington State: “Joe Biden will lose to Donald Trump”she warned.

Beyond these public statements, concern is also growing behind the scenes. In the House of Representatives, “a large and growing group of Democrats (…) are concerned about the president’s candidacy,” a parliamentarian from the presidential camp told CNN, on condition of anonymity. “We want to give him time to make a decision. (to withdraw)but more and more of us will express our concerns if he doesn’t.”he warned. Among more than 20 current and former Democratic officials interviewed by CNN, many support withdrawing his candidacy, or even hope for a decision in the coming days. Discussions have begun to emerge about his possible replacement.

According to CNN, several Democratic governors have requested a meeting at the White House as a way to voice their concerns following the debate. Biden is scheduled to meet with them late Wednesday, according to his official schedule. “We will have a healthy discussion with the president”assured Illinois Governor JB Pritzker.

“For now, Joe Biden is our candidate, I am 100% behind his candidacy, unless he makes another decision.”

JB Pritzker, Democratic Governor of Illinois

on CNN

In an online meeting with some 500 donors on Monday, Joe Biden’s campaign manager assured that her team was asking “a clear look” on his candidate’s performance. Jen O’Malley Dillon recalled that in February, the president’s doctor had judged him “apt” to serve. Concerns about his age have been relatively downplayed and the possibility of a re-election has not been raised, CNN reports.

Joe Biden’s upcoming public appearances could be decisive. The leader is scheduled to give an interview to ABC News on Friday and participate in a press conference during the week of July 8 at the White House. A way to reassure people about his abilities, four months before the election?