Sen. Peter Welch on Wednesday night became the first Senate Democrat to call on President Biden to forgo reelection, writing that he “cannot forget” the 81-year-old Biden’s dismal performance in his June 27 debate with Donald Trump.
“Like much of the nation, I am concerned about the November election,” Sen. Welch (D-Vermont) wrote in an op-ed in The Washington Post. “The stakes couldn’t be higher. We cannot forget President Biden’s disastrous debate performance, and we cannot ignore or dismiss the legitimate questions that have been raised since that night.”
“I understand why President Biden wants to run,” added Welch, 77. “He saved us from Donald Trump once and he wants to do it again. But he needs to reconsider whether he’s the best candidate to do that. In my view, he’s not.”
“In the national interest, I call on President Biden to withdraw from the race.”
Welch joined nine House Democrats who called on Biden to drop out of the race: Reps. Lloyd Doggett of Texas, Raul Grijalva of Arizona, Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, Mike Quigley of Illinois, Angie Craig of Minnesota, Adam Smith of Washington, Mickey Sherrill of New Jersey, Pat Ryan of New York and Earl Blumenauer of Oregon.
