 "'Time for him to pass the torch': Top Democrat Adam Schiff calls on Biden to drop out of presidential race")
Amid growing calls for Joe Biden to step down from the presidential race, Rep. Adam Schiff on Wednesday became the most heavyweight Democrat so far to publicly urge the US President to end his reelection campaign.
In a statement, Schiff said, “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.”
While Schiff, a key congressional Democrat, praised Biden, he doubted that the 81-year-old incumbent could defeat Donald Trump – a threat to “the very foundation of our democracy.”
“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,” Schiff added.
Who is Adam Schiff?
The Californian, who is expected to win a Senate seat this November, is one of the party’s most influential members and a key ally in the legislature for the White House.
He served as chairman of the House intelligence panel when Democrats had the majority in 2019 and shot to nationwide prominence as lead prosecutor during then-president Trump’s first impeachment trial.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsDemocrats will lose if Biden stays in race
A report by the New York Times quoted sources as saying that Rep. Schiff privately told Democrat donors that the party could suffer “substantial losses” if President Biden sticks to his narrative of him being fit enough to run for the top post.
“I think if he is our nominee, I think we lose. “And we may very, very well lose the Senate and lose our chance to take back the House,” Schiff said.
Two-thirds Democrats want Biden to withdraw
Nearly two-thirds of Democrats say President Joe Biden should withdraw from the presidential race and let his party nominate a different candidate, according to a new poll, sharply undercutting his post-debate claim that “average Democrats” are still with him even if some “big names” are turning on him.
The new survey by the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, conducted as Biden works to salvage his candidacy two weeks after his debate flop, also found that only about 3 in 10 Democrats are extremely or very confident that he has the mental capability to serve effectively as president, down slightly from 40 per cent in an AP-NORC poll in February.
Biden lashes out at Democrats
Meanwhile, Bidenm, tired of being questioned about his fitness to rerun, lashed out at Rep. Jason Crow after he told him that voters are concerned about his vigour and strength.
According to a report by CNN, Biden even told Crow that he “doesn’t want to hear that crap” as the latter was telling him about how the US president is being perceived on the global stage.
With inputs fro agencies
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
