President Joe Biden is aging, and not gracefully, which has led to a growing number of Democrat voters saying they would prefer someone else to lead the party.
And a growing number of Democratic lawmakers are echoing those calls.
Over the weekend, Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., turned heads within the party when he said anyone who wants to challenged Biden for the Democratic nomination should “take a chance.”
Phillips told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday that he “adores” Biden. However, he thinks it’s time for him to “pass the torch” to new leaders.
“I would like to see a moderate governor, hopefully from the heartland, from one of the four states that Democrats will need,” he said in terms of who he would like to see run.
“Anybody who wants to run, Joe Manchin, Cornel West… that’s why we have primaries because that doesn’t undermine the likelihood of returning, in this case, a Democrat to the White House. I’m actively inviting, encouraging to some degree, imploring that people who are ready and know it’s probably time to do so take the chance,” he added.
Fox News contributor Lisa Boothe argued Democrats would “love” to “get rid” of Biden. However, they realize they would be “stuck” with Vice President Kamala Harris.
“I saw a recent poll where even 50% of Democrats wanted a different nominee in the 2024 election. I think I’ve seen the number as high as 75%, right? So they’d love to get rid of him, but then you’re stuck with Kamala Harris and so that presents an interesting scenario for them. How do you get rid of both of them? I mean, Kamala Harris is the least popular vice president in American history, even less popular than Dick Cheney after he shot someone. So that’s saying something [and] that’s the challenge for them,” she explained on “The Big Weekend Show.”
Boothe further remarked that the Democratic Party is reluctant to support a third-party candidacy due to concerns about potentially jeopardizing their chances in the 2024 election.
Co-host Joe Concha labeled it a “fool’s errand” for a member within Biden’s party to attempt a nomination challenge, pointing out that the DNC has already stated that the president will not participate in any debates.
“Joe Biden can run, and Joe Biden can win. And I look at this New York Times focus group, and it was done by Kristen Soltis Anderson, [who] I think is quite good at what she does. And they took 12 Biden voters, and they asked all 12 of them, this is 2020 Biden voters. Do you think Joe Biden’s a strong leader? All 12 answered no. Do you think he’s disappointing as a president? All 12 answer yes. Do you think he should run in 2024? All 12 answer no. Who are you voting for in 2024? All 12 answer Joe Biden,” Concha said.
“People vote against candidates these days, not for them. And that’s what I think the Democrats are banking,” he added.
