President Biden told congressional Democrats in a letter Monday that he was committed to “running this race to the end” and that it was time for conversations about changing nominees to stop, as public and private calls for him to exit from the contest grow louder.
In the letter, Biden said he had had “extensive conversations” with party leadership, members and voters over the past 10 days and said he wasn’t blind to the concerns about his age and his candidacy that have emerged since his disastrous debate performance. But he said he was heartened by “rock-solid, steadfast support” from many and wouldn’t continue if he wasn’t confident he could beat former President Donald Trump
A defiant Biden also argued that he had been made the nominee in the Democratic primary process and that to step aside would disenfranchise those voters, though no prominent Democrats chose to challenge him in the primaries. “How can we stand for Democracy in our nation, if we ignore it in our own party,” he wrote. “I cannot do that. I will not do that.”
The president also called in to MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Monday to make the same arguments. He said he has been talking to voters around the country. “I wanted to make sure I was right, that the average voter out there wanted Joe Biden and I’m confident that they do,” he said over the phone. “I am not going anywhere.”
Biden told the hosts that he had a “neurological physical” in February and continued to argue that he had a bad night during the debate. Asked about the editorial boards and elected officials who have said he should step aside, he said: “I don’t care about what those big names think.”
“I’m getting frustrated by the elites…in the party,” he said. “If any of these guys don’t think I should run, run against me. Announce for president, challenge me at the convention.”