Democratic Reps. Seth Moulton, Mike Quigley Call On Joe Biden To Quit Race

Reps. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) and Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) on Thursday said President Joe Biden should drop his reelection bid, making them the third and fourth elected Democrats to say the president should step aside.

President Biden has done enormous service to our country, but now is the time for him to follow in one of our founding father, George Washingtons, footsteps and step aside to let new leaders rise up and run against Donald Trump , Moulton told Boston radio station WBUR on Thursday .

Later, on MSNBC , Quigley said Biden had already achieved a worthy legacy as president.

The only thing that you can do now, to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe, is to step down and let someone else do this, Quigley said.

Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL) calls on Biden to exit the race:

\"Mr. President, your legacy is set. We owe you the greatest debt of gratitude. The only thing that you can do now, to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe, is to step down and let someone else do this.\" pic.twitter.com/60hCJJMVHf

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The only thing that you can do now, to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe, is to step down and let someone else do this.\" pic.twitter.com/60hCJJMVHf All In with Chris Hayes (@allinwithchris) July 5, 2024\n\n\n","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false},"_maxwidth":{"label":"Adjust width","placeholder":"220-550, in px","value":""},"_theme":{"value":"","values":{"dark":"Use dark theme"}}},"provider_name":"Twitter","title":"All In with Chris Hayes on Twitter / 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Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL) calls on Biden to exit the race:

"Mr. President, your legacy is set. We owe you the greatest debt of gratitude. The only thing that you can do now, to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe, is to step down and let someone else do this." pic.twitter.com/60hCJJMVHf
All In with Chris Hayes (@allinwithchris) July 5, 2024

Moulton and Quigley followed Reps. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) and Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) in saying that Biden should bow out of the presidential race.

The calls for a new candidate came after Bidens weak debate performance last week, in which he lost his train of thought as he spoke, gave garbled answers to some questions and left his mouth hanging open when he wasnt speaking. At 81, Biden is the oldest president in U.S. history.

Former President Trump lied throughout the debate and also gave irrelevant and incoherent answers, but his delivery was much stronger. Even though Trump is 78, surveys have shown the age question is a major disadvantage for Biden.

Several other Democrats have come close to saying Biden should step down. Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.), for instance, said Wednesday that the debate brought up questions... that I dont think its prudent to dismiss.

The White House claimed Biden had a cold during the debate, and Biden himself said he was exhausted from recent international travel. Biden reportedly told Democratic governors on Wednesday that he needs more sleep and less work at night.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said this week that Biden could bolster confidence in his cognitive abilities by doing several interviews with journalists. To that end, the president sat down with ABC News George Stephanopoulos for an interview airing Friday evening.

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Its possible more Democrats will call on Biden to step aside. Several draft letters to that effect are reportedly circulating among House and Senate lawmakers.

In earlier statements this week, both Moulton and Quigley laid out their concerns about Biden without fully saying he should drop out.

The unfortunate reality is that the status quo will likely deliver us President Trump, Moulton said. When your current strategy isnt working, its rarely the right strategy to double down. President Biden is not going to get younger.