The New York Times has called on Joe Biden in a startling editorial to drop out of the race for the presidency to "serve his country" following his disastrous performance in the debate against presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Amid the extraordinary call by the newspaper, others, including former President Barack Obama, rushed to Biden's defense.
But the stakes are too high to have the wrong man battle the dangerous Trump in a contest that will determine "nothing less than the future of democracy," the newspaper warned in an editorial highlighted on the front page.
Biden "is not the man he was four years ago" when he beat Trump, the Times noted following the president's fragile, muddled performance in his face-off against his opponent, whose own appearance "should have been disqualifying" for his brazen lies and devastating plans for the nation, the paper added.
Democrats "must now find the courage to speak plain truths to the party's leader," the Times urged.
While talk mounted among Democrats about replacing Biden, Obama came to his defense, declaring in a social media post: "Bad debate nights happen. Trust me, I know, referring to his own disastrous debate performance to win re-election in 2012.
The race still comes down to a choice between "someone who tells the truth; who knows right from wrong and will give it to the American people straight — and someone who lies through his teeth for his own benefit," he added.
