Rep. Adam Schiff on Wednesday became the most prominent elected Democrat to publicly call on President Joe Biden to drop out of the race, CNN reported.
The announcement by Schiff, who is running for US Senate in California, makes him the first Democrat to urge Biden to step aside since the failed assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump over the weekend.
Schiff’s call also is notable as he, unlike many of the other Democrats who have so far publicly called for Biden to drop out, is not in a swing district and he is close to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
“While the choice to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden’s alone, I believe it is time for him to pass the torch. And in doing so, secure his legacy of leadership by allowing us to defeat Donald Trump in the upcoming election,” Schiff said in a statement quoted by CNN.
Schiff praised Biden’s legacy but added, “our nation is at a crossroads. A second Trump presidency will undermine the very foundation of our democracy, and I have serious concerns about whether the President can defeat Donald Trump in November.”
Previously, Schiff would only go so far as to say Biden “should take a moment to make the best-informed judgment” about the future of his campaign.
A Biden campaign official responded to the call from Schiff by pointing to a July 8 letter from Biden to congressional Democrats noting his intention to stay in the race.
Biden has faced calls to withdraw from the presidential race following his poor showing at the recent debate against former President Donald Trump.
Schiff’s call followed a report in ABC News which said that Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer told Biden in a meeting on Saturday it would be better for the country and the Democratic Party if he ended his reelection campaign.
The ABC News report follows an Axios report last week which said that Schumer is privately signaling to donors that he's open to a Democratic presidential ticket that isn't led by Biden.
A Schumer spokesman initially declined to comment, but Schumer later issued a statement in which he said, "As I have made clear repeatedly, publicly and privately, I support President Biden and remain committed to ensuring Donald Trump is defeated in November."
So far Biden has resisted the calls to withdraw. Asked in an interview on Wednesday what would convince him to drop out of the race, the President replied, “If I had some medical condition that emerged, if somebody, if doctors came to me and said, you got this problem and that problem."
“I said I was going to be a transitional candidate, and I thought I would be able to move on from this and pass it on to somebody else,” he said, explaining why he feels he must run again. “But I didn’t anticipate things getting so, so, so divided. And quite frankly, I think the only thing age brings is a little bit of wisdom.”