It is being reported that New Mexico Senior Senator Martin Heinrich, who is up for reelection to a third term became the third Democratic US Senator to publicly call on President Joe Biden to leave the presidential race. Heinrich said this:
“This moment in our nation’s history calls for a focus that is bigger than any one person, The return of Donald Trump to the White House poses an existential danger to our democracy. We must defeat him in November, and we need a candidate who can do that. While the decision to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden’s alone, I believe it is in the best interests of our country for him to step aside. … By passing the torch, he would secure his legacy as one of our nation’s greatest leaders and allow us to unite behind a candidate who can best defeat Donald Trump and safeguard the future of our democracy.
Polling conducted by the National Republican Senatorial Committee and GOP nominee Nella Domenici’s campaign last month showed her in a margin-of-error race with Heinrich, though Democrats have expressed confidence about their chances for the seat.
An AP-NORC poll found nearly two-thirds of Democrats want Biden to withdraw. These calls have been mounting since the first presidential debate and subsequent public appearances that raised questions about his age and his ability to serve a second term.
Biden will turn 82 in November. If elected to a second term, he would leave office at age 86.
Heinrich joins fellow Democratic Sens. Peter Welch of Vermont and Jon Tester of Montana in publicly calling on Biden to step aside.
Senator Peter Welch became the first Democratic senator to call on President Joe Biden to step aside as the party’s presidential nominee. Welch said this in a Washington Post op-ed:
“The stakes could not be higher. We cannot unsee President Biden’s disastrous debate performance. We cannot ignore or dismiss the valid questions raised since that night. I understand why President Biden wants to run. He saved us from Donald Trump once and wants to do it again. … But he needs to reassess whether he is the best candidate to do so. In my view, he is not. For the good of the country, I’m calling on President Biden to withdraw from the race.”
Senator Jon Tester, who is up for reelection in Republican-leaning Montana said this about Biden stepping aside:
“Montanans have put their trust in me to do what is right, and it is a responsibility I take seriously. … I have worked with President Biden when it has made Montana stronger, and I’ve never been afraid to stand up to him when he is wrong. And while I appreciate his commitment to public service and our country, I believe President Biden should not seek re-election to another term.”
U.S. REPRESENTATIVE GABE VASQUEZ CALLS UPON PRESIDENT BIDEN TO WITHDRAW
On July 19, New Mexico U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez called upon President Biden to withdraw from the race. In a statement released the freshman congressman called Biden an honorable public servant and said this:
“President Joe Biden is an honorable public servant who has dedicated his career to bettering the lives of all American. … We owe him a great debt of gratitude for his time serving our nation. However, I believe too many of our fundamental freedoms and the wellbeing of our nation are at risk under a Trump presidency, and President Biden should step aside to give Democrats the best opportunity to win this November. … With abortion rights under attack and our Democracy at stake, we must unite to defeat Donald Trump and MAGA extremists. But make no mistake, regardless of who our nominee is, my number one job will be to take care of the people of my district and continue bringing results home to New Mexico.”
Vasquez has previously declined to answer questions about whether Biden should exit the race after Biden’s debate last month with Trump raised questions about his mental acuity and ability to serve another term. Vasquez narrowly defeated Republican incumbent Yvette Herrell in 2022 to win a district that was significantly redrawn by lawmakers a year earlier during the once-per-decade task of redistricting. He is facing a rematch with Herrell this year in what’s expected to be one of the nation’s most competitive and expensive races.
The links to other quoted and relied news sources are here:
https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/heinrich-calls-on-biden-to-drop-out-of-us-presidential-race/
https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/10/politics/peter-welch-democratic-senators-biden/index.html
https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/biden-trump-rnc-07-19-24/index.html
https://www.newsweek.com/joe-bidens-family-mapping-out-plan-drop-out-report-1927721