Another House Democrat has now added his voice to the growing number of calls within the Democratic Party for President Joe Biden to end his reelection bid following his second-rate debate performance last week.
The New York Times reported Wednesday that Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Arizona) is now the second Democratic member of Congress to urge Biden to step aside, after Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) did the same on Tuesday. Grijalva — who has represented Arizona's 3rd Congressional District (previously the 7th) since 2003 — is an influential member of the House Democratic Caucus, having co-chaired the Congressional Progressive Caucus for a decade between 2009 and 2019.
"If he’s the candidate, I’m going to support him, but I think that this is an opportunity to look elsewhere," Grijalva told the Times. "What he needs to do is shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seat — and part of that responsibility is to get out of this race."
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Grijalva's comments come on the heels of previous reporting by the Times on Wednesday. A "key ally" of Biden reportedly confirmed the 46th president of the United States is quietly considering bowing out of the 2024 election, depending on how he does in this week's scheduled campaign events. Biden has agreed to a one-on-one interview with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos on Friday, and has scheduled rallies in the pivotal swing states of Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. White House spokesman Andrew Bates denied those reports.
Should Biden decide to no longer seek a second term in office, the likeliest scenario would be that he throws his endorsement behind Vice President Kamala Harris. The vice president is the only Democrat who could access the roughly $240 million in campaign cash Biden has on hand, as any other candidate who may be nominated would have to start from scratch. Harris also has the highest name recognition out of all other high-profile Democrats, and betting site PredictIt shows the vice president is now the favorite to win the 2024 Democratic nomination — even above Biden himself.
The only way any proposed alternate candidates — like California Governor Gavin Newsom, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer — could access the Biden-Harris war chest would be if the funds were transferred to a Democratic super PAC, though the candidate's campaign would be legally unable to directly coordinate on how the funds would be spent.
The 46th president of the United States has so far remained adamant that he's up to the task of defeating former President Donald Trump in November. During a Wednesday call with Democratic National Committee members, Biden doubled down, saying: "I am running. I am the leader of the Democratic Party. No one is pushing me out."
READ MORE: Biden defiant as calls grow to exit race: 'I'm not leaving'
"I'm not leaving," the 81 year-old president reportedly said on the call. "I'm in this race to the end, and we're going to win."
First Lady Jill Biden, who is likely the primary voice the president is considering when weighing his options of whether to stay in the race, also fielded concerns from Democrats while attending the opening of a campaign office in Michigan on Wednesday. While some supporters said they were "sick with worry," the first lady reassured them that "Joe is the Democratic nominee, and he is going to beat Donald Trump just like he did in 2020."
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Click here to read the Times' reporting (subscription required).
