U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Town of Vermont, today joined the growing calls for President Joe Biden to drop out of the presidential race.
In a joint statement with fellow Dems California U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman, Texas U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey and Illinois U.S. Rep. Chuy Garcia, they said “we must face the reality that widespread concerns about your age and fitness are jeopardizing what should be a winning campaign.”
While they said the perceptions may not be fair, “the most responsible and patriotic thing you can do in this moment is to step aside as our nominee while continuing to lead our party from the White House.”
They added the party has “a deep and talented bench of younger leaders, led by Vice President Kamala Harris, who you can have lifted up, empowered, and prepared for this moment.”
Pocan in a post on X said he is appreciative of what Biden has done for the country, “but having a second Trump presidency is as scary of a thought as I can have.”
“We need to move forward in a way that ensures Trump is never president,” Pocan said. “It’s time to pass the torch.”
State Sen. Kelda Roys, D-Madison, today joined the call for Biden to step aside as well. She posted on X, “As his path to victory has become vanishingly small, our best path to victory begins with him stepping aside. The Democratic Party has brilliant, energetic, competent leaders, including VP Harris and many others.”