Schiff calls on Biden to bow out of 2024 race, ‘pass the torch’

U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., called on President Joe Biden to step out of the presidential race Wednesday, making him the latest high-profile Democrat to do so as Biden tries to manage a civil war within his own party over his nomination.

“While the choice to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden’s alone, I believe it is time for him to pass the torch,” Schiff said in a statement, first reported by The Los Angeles Times.

“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,” he added.

Biden’s woes largely began after his disastrous debate performance at the end of June where he fumbled and became incoherent, drawing widespread concern and public calls from Democrats that he should step aside.

An AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll released Wednesday found that the majority of Democrats want Biden to step out of the race. The survey reports that nearly 2 out of 3 Democrats want Biden to allow a different Democrat to receive the nomination for president.

Most elected Democrats in their public calls have said they appreciate Biden but fear he can no longer beat former President Donald Trump, who leads Biden in nearly every swing state as well as in national overall polling.

Schiff is just the latest, albeit a more high-profile Democrat than some of the others calling for Biden to step aside.

Pressure for Biden to step aside had been largely paused by the attempted assassination attempt of Trump on Saturday, but Schiff and others’ calls could turn up the pressure even more now.

Biden has remained defiant, insisting he will be the party’s nominee and that Democrats should move on from the topic.

The Democratic Convention is Aug. 19-22, a looming deadline for Democrats hoping for a change.