The Democratic Party has become entangled in a perverse dynamic. It is not clear whether the best candidate to beat Donald Trump is still the president, Joe Biden, or whether it would be better for him to hand over the baton to his vice president, Kamala Harris, or to any other Democratic candidate. What does seem clear is that continuing to constantly question Biden while he remains the headliner weakens the electoral chances of his party, both in the presidential and legislative elections. In this situation, the Democratic congressmen met on Tuesday to discuss the internal crisis that has been unleashed and came out with a message of unity: Donald Trump must be beaten.
Democratic spokespeople have avoided mentioning Biden even once in their opening remarks at the press conference following the caucus meeting. The congressmen met to talk about Biden, but when they came out to report on the meeting they only talked about Trump. After repeatedly criticizing the Republican and emphasizing the threat posed by his policies, the president of the Democratic caucus, Pete Aguilar, has finally shown his support for Biden, although with an introductory “right now” that does not heal the wounds: “Right now, President Biden is the candidate and we support the Democratic candidate to beat Donald Trump.”
The Democratic congressmen have been meeting for around two hours in the Capitol. On leaving, the vast majority of those who have spoken have done so to show their support for the president. Behind closed doors, however, there have been voices that continue to express doubts about Biden being the best possible candidate.
“The president himself has said that he will be out there. It is about campaigning and moving,” he said regarding those doubts. “Let’s see. Let’s see the press conferences. Let’s see the campaign stops. Let’s see all of this, because it will be necessary,” he added. He was also asked if the president should address congressmen directly to address his concerns: “That depends on the president and his team. I cannot talk about that,” he replied.
“Today we had a meeting that gave members the opportunity to express themselves candidly and thoroughly, and those discussions will continue throughout the rest of the week,” said Hakeem Jeffries, the House Democratic parliamentary leader. “I’m with Joe,” repeated Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader.
Since Biden’s disastrous CNN debate in Atlanta against Donald Trump in late June, political, media and financial pressure for him to step aside has grown. The president, however, has challenged critics to confront him. “The question of how to move forward has been well and truly open for more than a week. And it is time for it to end,” Biden said in a letter to lawmakers on Monday. “We have one job. And that is to defeat Donald Trump,” he added, after assuring that he is “firmly committed” to his plan to run for re-election.
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Turn the page
If Biden does not step aside voluntarily, it will be very difficult to remove him from his chair. The division within the party continues. Steve Cohen, one of those who attended the parliamentary meeting, was asked upon leaving if there had been an agreement and the congressmen were “on the same page.” “We are not even in the same book,” he replied expressively.
The president, meanwhile, wants to “turn the page,” as White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre insists. So far, he is not succeeding. The spokeswoman’s daily press conferences become a barrage of questions about Biden’s mental acuity and state of health.
The latest controversy has been over the number of times Dr. Kevin Cannard, a neurologist who has conducted research on Parkinson’s disease, is listed on the White House visitor log. Cannard visited the White House eight times between July 2023 and March. The same doctor also visited during the presidencies of Barack Obama and Donald Trump, but the White House has had to clarify that he is not treating Biden and that the White House medical unit treats many other people besides the president.
Cannard has served as a specialist on the White House Medical Unit, treating patients for a wide variety of neurological problems for 12 years, according to a letter released by Biden’s physician, Kevin O’Connor. Cannard only saw the president for his regular annual checkups, finding no symptoms of Parkinson’s or cognitive decline.
In this perverse dynamic, the White House is engaged in denials, negations and clarifications that never cease. No, Biden does not have Alzheimer’s. No, Biden is not considering withdrawing his candidacy. No, Biden has not been diagnosed with or is being treated for Parkinson’s. No, members of Biden’s Cabinet are not considering applying the article of the Constitution that allows the incapacitation of the president. Each of these denials, however, continues to hurt him even in the form of denials.
Biden, meanwhile, is confident of doing well at this week’s NATO summit, which has its first major event on Tuesday. After last week’s interview on ABC News failed to clear up any doubts, the next milestone is set for this Thursday’s press conference, after the summit ends. It is expected to be the most extensive he has given since November 2022.
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