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The number of Democrats who want to convince President Joe Biden to drop out of the race is on the rise. However, it still appears to be far from reaching critical mass. Therefore, to buy some time, congressional Democrats are circulating a letter that urges the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to postpone a “virtual roll call” that would make Biden the party’s nominee as early as next week.
Instead of renominating the president at the party’s convention in August, the DNC came up with the idea of an accelerated process in light of an Ohio law that might have kept Biden off the ballot in the Buckeye State.
However, that law was changed since this plan was originally made, meaning there is no actual reason to speed up the nomination.
“We write to share our serious concerns about the DNC’s plan to hold a ‘virtual roll call’ to select our Democratic Presidential Nominee as early as July 21,” a draft of the letter, which was penned by Rep. Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA), said. “There is no legal justification for this extraordinary and unprecedented action which would effectively accelerate the nomination process by nearly a month.”
It is clear why those who want a change at the top of the ticket want more time.
After Biden’s disastrous debate performance last month reinforced concerns about his age and frailty, many Democrats were left wondering whether he can defeat Donald Trump.
Since then, and following some additional gaffes, those voices have only grown louder.
However, Biden has insisted that he will stay in the race. And, since he has not stumbled so badly yet that even his many allies have to acknowledge that he is the wrong candidate to win in November, an accelerated nomination might just put him in a position of strength by creating a logistical nightmare to replace him later.
That is a cynical way to hold on to power, according to the letter.
“Proceeding with the ‘virtual roll call’ in the absence of a valid legal rationale will be rightly perceived as a purely political maneuver, which we believe would be counterproductive and undermine party unity and cohesion,” the letter states. “Moreover, it would contradict what President Biden himself has repeatedly said to members of Congress in recent days, telling us that anyone who wants to challenge his nomination should do so ‘at the convention.’”
While the revolt against Biden has been very civil up to this point, that could change if it appears that the party leadership is using shady maneuvers to help him.
“The Democratic Party — not just elected officials and delegates, but also millions of grassroots voters — is currently engaged in careful consideration and debate about the absolute imperative of defeating Donald Trump and winning control of Congress,” the cosigners, who say that they are representing a wide range of viewpoints, from those who want Biden out to those who believe that he is the best man for the job.
“All of us, however, agree that stifling debate and prematurely shutting down any possible change in the Democratic ticket through an unnecessary and unprecedented ‘virtual roll call’ in the days ahead is a terrible idea,” they said in the letter, which was first revealed by The New York Times. “It could deeply undermine the morale and unity of Democrats — from delegates, volunteers, grassroots organizers and donors to ordinary voters — at the worst possible time.”
