There had been awareness among Senate Democrats for some time that one of their aging colleagues was in trouble, but they were not ready to criticize or openly question a person who is treated like one of their own.
After all, this individual had held a legendary status within the party and within them was a living legend whose past achievements qualified him to remain with them forever, at least voluntarily.
Additionally, there weren’t many younger senators around, so pushing out someone who showed signs of age would make too many people uneasy about themselves. But none of the congressional party leaders—such as New York’s Senator Chuck Schumer who is currently the majority leader—wanted to be the first ones to initiate public campaigns aimed at forcibly ousting friends and allies.
This same problem that Democratic senators have now come across concerning Biden’s campaign has also been face by aged members of the chamber who have seen many of their fellows including Biden—who served for three decades in the Senate—hold onto their positions while growing older.
They just went through a similarly uncomfortable situation when former California senator Dianne Feinstein was in her last years alive.
Ms. Feinstein’s case was more straightforward than Mr. Biden’s; she began using a wheelchair as her condition worsened and seemed to be in advanced stages of dementia which made it impossible for her to function without assistance from others. As regards Biden’s precise health status, his ability to handle various parts of his current job appears good enough although he did hint at more frequent mental lapses during his disastrous debate performance earlier this year that raised concerns about his cognitive abilities; physical strength; and capability in dealing with high-stakes politics such as beating ex-president Trump.
However, that dynamic is what has kept Senator Schumer and other Democratic colleagues from publicly urging Mr. Biden to leave race like they did with Ms. Feinstein.
It has been fueled by factors that built America’s geriatric political class such as an attitude against questioning incumbency and accrued power, staffs surrounding an aged boss who are loyal and politically motivated as well as the concept of loyalty to a name instead of realpolitik.
At this extreme juncture, though, all of that is mitigate by Democrats’ fear that not replacing Biden could have disastrous repercussions across the White House and Congress. Democratic staffers in both chambers expect things to come to a head on Tuesday when members of the House and Senate hold their weekly private caucus meetings with lawmakers having time for face-to-face conspiracy talks as well as fielding reporter queries.
Though they warned against underestimating members’ capacity for cold feet.
For now at least, several Democratic senators are quietly hoping that it will be loud-mouth colleagues from the more raucous House—five of whom have already made public calls for Biden’s withdrawal—who will turn up the heat on him enough to get him out of race.
“It’s an extremely rare thing they don’t like to do,” White House historian Chris Whipple said of senators pushing out a colleague or party leader publicly. “They are going to him as of now with an argument that, ‘We don’t think you’re up to it,’ and he says, ‘I know I’m up to it — and what’s more, all these Democrats voted for me.’ He is stronger than them.”
Biden played that hand hard on Monday, calling the bluff of congressional Democrats who privately urged him to quit his campaign in a letter in which he vowed “firmly committed to staying in the race.”
Not long after this, Biden called into Parami News “Morning Joe” on Monday and stated, “If any of these guys don’t think I should run, run against me.” Challenge me at the convention announce yourself for president!’
This was reminiscent of Feinstein defying anyone who questioned whether she should remain as senator. Ms. Feinstein would not speak about stepping down before her term ends despite questions raised about how she could continue representing 40 million Californians.
“At that time too, I was still working and getting results for California,” she declare.
Feinstein also dared fellow Democrats with concerns to take her on publicly and tell her to step aside. They didn’t. Instead Schumer backed her decision openly.
Representative Nancy Pelosi of California is a former speaker who rejected calls for resignation by Ms Feinstein as being sexist and argued that being an early woman in politics meant she had earned service as long as voters put her there.
When Ms. Feinstein missed much of last year from Senate Judiciary Committee business Senator Richard J. Durbin (Democrat – Illinois) delivered not so stern message on television regarding his ailing colleague. Durbin expressed hope that she decides soon if she is returning back”.
Some Democratic senators have begun openly suggesting Biden might want to consider stepping aside.
“Joe has got to prove to the American people, including me, that he is capable of doing this job for another four years,” said Senator Jon Tester, a vulnerable Democrat who is up for election in Montana.
Over the weekend senators Christopher S. Murphy and Michael Bennet both of Colorado made similar statements as did Angus King an independent from Maine caucusing with Democrats.
Senator Peter Welch of Vermont warns about a “fierce undertow” for Democratic House and Senate candidates if the party’s presidential candidate loses badly in November.
Democrats have also been telling everybody that there is a future of democracy on the ballot this November.
But 11 days after a terrible debate performance by Biden, Senate Democrats seemed to be reading the same book as they did in the case of Ms. Feinstein. They have mostly kept their silence even though they privately worry that President Joe Biden’s weak run for presidency can cost them not only the White House but also control over the Senate as well as a chance to gain control over the Republican-controlled House.
Whipple argued that Biden would only change his stubborn position if top democrats took him through an intervention that involved all his closest political associates from both houses of congress. “If there were some kind of unofficial delegation containing Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries, but perhaps Jim Clyburn and Chris Coons too,” said Whipple, “it might be possible that he could hear it.”
None had appeared as at Monday with more Democrats instead coming out in public stating their support for a President who has made it clear he will not go quietly.
On Monday Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, Democrat of Nevada, issued a statement saying that the president had “always had Nevadans’ backs, whether it’s on the picket lines, protecting our personal freedoms or lowering costs — now it’s time for us to have his.”
