A Democrat lawmaker from a key battleground state is calling on President Joe Biden to end his reelection campaign.
Rep. Hillary Scholten, D-Mich., on Thursday became the 10th House Democrat to call for Biden to step aside as the party's presumptive presidential nominee.
"President Biden has served his country well, but for the sake of our democracy, he must pass the torch to a new candidate for the 2024 election," Scholten said in a post on X with a more detailed statement.
Scholten told The Detroit News that she has heard from constituents since Biden's disastrous debate performance two weeks ago and they now question the president's ability to lead.
"It has become clear over the last several weeks that a change needs to be made," she told the News. "Millions of people, including so many of my constituents, saw what they saw on the debate stage and, out of respect and a measured response, we waited two weeks for the president to assuage concerns that people had, to bring us back together. And that hasn't happened.
"I have heard from countless constituents who are asking me to act in this moment and as their voice."
Scholten represents Michigan's 3rd Congressional District, which includes Grand Rapids and once was represented by former President Gerald Ford. She is the first member of Michigan's congressional delegation to call on Biden to end his reelection bid.
"We just have too much at stake in this election to sit on the sidelines and be silent while we still have time to do something," Scholten told the News.
"Ultimately this choice belongs to the president and the president alone. I will respect his decision if he chooses to remain in the race, and I will still vote for him, as a clear and necessary alternative to Donald Trump, who would sow chaos and destruction if he were to return to the Oval Office."
Michigan is considered one of six or seven swing states likely to determine the outcome of the presidential election.
Former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, will officially accept the nomination during next week's Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
CNN Capitol Hill reporter Annie Grayer on Tuesday said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told caucus members this week that he will relay to Biden their concerns about the president and his reelection campaign.
Axios reported Thursday that House Democrats were looking to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., to persuade Biden to drop his reelection bid.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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