Jill Biden, you must convince your husband to step aside
![Jill Biden, you must convince your husband to step aside](https://thehill.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/bidens-2159615521.jpg?w=900)
Dear First Lady Biden:
We, the American people desperately need you. We need you to save this country from the prospect of four more years of Donald Trump. We need you now.
But first, we must thank you for convincing your husband to run for president in 2020. He was the only one who could beat Donald Trump, and he did. Then he delivered just what the country needed. He brought us out of the COVID-19 crisis, he rebuilt our economy to the strongest in the world, he restored America’s leadership and he racked up more legislative victories in four years, most of them with bipartisan support, than most presidents achieve in eight years.
For his first four years alone, Joe Biden will be rightfully remembered as one of America’s best and most effective presidents. And, no doubt, were he given four more years, he’d achieve even more.
But you must know, Dr. Biden, that opportunity of a second term is far from certain — and even less certain after his performance in last Thursday’s debate against Donald Trump.
Fairly or unfairly, voters are not paying much attention to your husband’s many successes, or to his plans for a second term. They’re mostly focused on whether he’s up to the job of a second term. That’s the sole reason they watched the debate.
Many of us agree with you that Joe Biden is, in fact, mentally and physically capable of serving for another four years. And that it’s unfair to judge his entire career by one bad night on the stage.
But, still, that’s the assurance the American people were looking for the night of the debate. That’s the vote of confidence they needed to get enthusiastically behind a second Biden term. And surely even you must recognize they didn’t get it.
Sadly, once that unfavorable impression was received, it’s impossible to turn it around. No energetic appearance at a campaign rally the next day, no evoking of an inspiring 2024 State of the Union speech, no hope of a better job in the second debate can erase the painful memory of what we all saw on June 27: a dishonest but energetic man versus an honest but incoherent man.
As you have said on many occasions, this is the most important election of our lifetime, because so much is at stake: the Constitution, the rule of law, the freedoms we’ve fought so hard to protect, our democracy itself. We must not risk letting Donald Trump get anywhere near the Oval Office again. Until last week, we knew we could count on Joe Biden to prevent that disaster. That’s no longer the case.
So, we need you to convince your husband that the only way forward now is to accept reality. Most Americans no longer believe he can beat Donald Trump. So, he must step aside and declare an open convention, allowing the Democratic Party to nominate a younger, stronger candidate who can beat Trump. It’s more important to save the nation than to save Joe Biden’s political career.
Please, first lady Biden, deliver that urgent message to the president. You’re the only one who can do it.
Bill Press hosts “The Bill Press Pod.” He is the author of “From the Left: A Life in the Crossfire.”
Date: |
Topics
Filter
-
NBC News - Politics
What’s the White House’s plan as more urge Biden to step aside?
As Joe Biden faces increasing pressure after his poor debate performance last week, all eyes are on polls and donors — which could hint at possible cracks in the president’s plan for reelection. Meet the Press moderator Kristen Welker joins TODAY.Joe Biden -
NBC News - Top stories
'I'm not leaving': Biden expands effort to tamp down calls to step aside
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Wednesday increased his outreach to lawmakers, Democratic governors, and staff after days of criticism that he hasn't done enough to personally tamp down on nervousness that he should abandon his run for ...Joe Biden -
The Hill - Politics
Boston Globe editorial board calls for Biden to step aside
The editorial board at The Boston Globe called on President Biden to suspend his campaign following his poor debate performance and a rocky few days for the Democratic Party. “In the days since last week’s presidential debate, President Biden’s ...Joe Biden -
NBC News - Politics
Biden defiant amid calls to step aside: ‘I am running’
President Joe Biden told his staff that he is staying in the race after his disappointing debate performance, but NBC News has learned that he is privately torn between acceptance and defiance. NBC’s Gabe Gutierrez reports for TODAY and NBC’s ...Joe Biden -
The New York Times - Top stories
Major Democratic Donors Devise Plans to Pressure Biden to Step Aside
The president appears intent on remaining on the ballot, while wealthy donors are discussing plans to put their money elsewhere.Joe Biden -
CBS News - Top stories
Eye Opener: More Democrats call for Biden to step aside in the presidential race
It's a pivotal 24 hours for President Biden, as more influential Democrats call for him to let someone else run in his place. Also, firefighters battle through intense record heat as they work to stop a raging California wildfire. All that and all ...Joe Biden -
NBC News - Top stories
Democratic Party rules show a clear path to replace Biden if he were to step aside
As Biden's campaign tries to calm nervous Democrats, the DNC is circulating talking points that misleadingly suggest there is no means of replacing the president at the top of the party's ticket.Joe Biden -
The Guardian - World
Kamala Harris may be our only hope. Biden should step aside and endorse her | Mehdi Hasan
It is with some surprise, reluctance and even trepidation that I write these words: Joe Biden should stand aside and endorse Kamala Harris. I have never been a fan of Kamala Harris.. I was an outspoken critic of her candidacy for the Democratic ...Joe Biden -
NBC News - Top stories
Kamala Harris fiercely defends Biden as her allies stand ready to back her should he step aside
While some Democrats have floated names like Gretchen Whitmer and Gavin Newsom, Harris supporters say she shouldn’t be passed over if Biden drops out of the race.Joe Biden -
NBC News - Top stories
Biden privately remains torn between defiance and acceptance amid calls to step aside
WASHINGTON — In recent conversations with aides, family members and allies outside the White House, President Joe Biden has vacillated between acceptance and defiance in the face of the seismic shift in his political standing within his own party, ...Joe Biden
More from The Hill
-
The Hill - Politics
Trump rips Stephanopoulos ahead of Biden ABC interview
Former President Trump slammed ABC anchor George Stephanopoulos as the “the meanest and most vicious Interviewer out there” ahead of President Biden’s sit-down interview with him later on Friday. In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump ...Joe Biden -
The Hill - Politics
Owning a house less affordable than any time in 17 years: Report
Story at a glance (NewsNation) — Buying a house in the U.S. today is less affordable than at any other time in the last 17 years, according to the real estate data company ATTOM. The typical costs of a home, including mortgage payments, property ... -
The Hill - Politics
Trump is finally — and rightly — winning the ‘lawfare’ battle
With the court’s reasonable and historically consistent ruling, all of the Trump prosecutions stand in peril.Donald Trump -
The Hill - Politics
Newsom: Trump 'wants to take us back to a pre-1960s world'
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.), one of several high-profile Democratic politicians seen as a possible replacement for President Biden should he leave the presidential race, slammed former President Trump on Thursday, saying he “wants to take us back ...Donald Trump -
The Hill - Politics
Keir Starmer and Labour’s massive victory
Labour’s supermajority reflects a major turnaround from the 2019 election.