By Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Democratic U.S. Senator Michael Bennet from Colorado told CNN on Tuesday he thinks Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden cannot win against former Republican President Donald Trump in the November 2024 elections.
KEY QUOTES
“Donald Trump is on track I think to win this election, and maybe win it by a landslide and take with it the Senate and the House,” Bennet said in an interview on CNN.
Bennet, however, did not call on Biden to step aside as presidential candidate.
“We should be having a discussion about that,” Bennet said when asked if Biden should step aside as candidate. “This is something for the president to consider.”
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
Democrats in the U.S. Congress have been deeply divided on over whether to fall in line behind Biden’s wounded reelection campaign or urge him to step aside because of persistent questions about his health and acuity.
Seven Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives have publicly asked Biden to end his re-election bid. No Democrat from the Senate has yet called on him to do so. Biden has repeatedly said he is staying in the race.
Biden’s halting June 27 debate performance against Trump and low public approval have raised fresh doubts among some Democrats about his ability to win the Nov. 5 election or to keep up with the demands of his grueling job for another 4-1/2 years.
CONTEXT
Many Democrats have expressed worries that Biden has not done enough to convince voters that the debate was an aberration, rather than a true reflection of his abilities.
Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer brushed off questions about Biden’s fitness, saying: “I’m with Joe,” during an exchange with reporters after Senate Democrats met to discuss the president’s campaign.
Some Democrats have expressed frustration that the party was focused on Biden’s shortcomings rather than unifying against his Republican rival.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Tom Hogue and Christian Schmollinger)
