Investing.com-- Peter Welch became the first Democrat Senator to publicly call on President Joe Biden to withdraw from his reelection bid, citing a “disastrous” performance during a debate with Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.
Welch, who represents Vermont in the Senate, wrote in a Washington Post (NYSE:POST) opinion piece on Wednesday that while he did harbor “great respect” for Biden, he could not overlook the President’s performance during the debate.
“We cannot unsee President Biden’s disastrous debate performance. We cannot ignore or dismiss the valid questions raised since that night,” Welch wrote in the piece.
Welch said that Biden needed to reassess whether he was the best candidate to run against Donald Trump, who he called a “felon” and a “pathological liar.”
He said that Biden had united the Democrats and had created a strong front that could defeat Trump, expressing support for Vice President Kamala Harris- who has been pegged as a potential replacement for Biden in the presidential race.
Welch is the first Democrat senator to openly call for Biden’s pulling out of the presidential race, with his comments coming after Biden’s performance during a June debate sparked widespread concerns over the President’s mental state.
Welch’s piece comes amid growing speculation over Biden’s ability to run against Trump. Actor George Clooney, who had just in June raised a record-high amount of funds for the Biden campaign, called on Biden to pull out of the Presidential race, also citing concerns over the 46th President's mental state.
Earlier on Wednesday, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said time was “running short” for Biden to decide whether he still wanted to run against Trump.
Biden has so far signaled that he has no plans to drop his bid for reelection.