ANALYSIS — When it comes to President Joe Biden’s plans for reelection, Republicans aren’t taking “no” for an answer and are pressuring him to resign altogether. Presumably, the goal is to embarrass Biden, weaken the Democratic Party and help give former President Donald Trump another advantage in the race. But the GOP strategy could do just the opposite.
The call for Biden to step down includes some of the top Republicans on the Hill.
“If Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as President,” said Speaker Mike Johnson in a release on Sunday. “He must resign the office immediately. November 5 cannot arrive soon enough.”
“If Joe Biden can’t run for re-election, he is unable and unfit to continue serving as President of the United States. He must immediately RESIGN his office for the good of the country,” said House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik in a release on Tuesday morning with the subject line “JOE BIDEN MUST RESIGN.”
“If President Biden is not fit enough to campaign, he is not capable of holding the nuclear codes. He should resign,” said GOP Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa in an email on Sunday as well.
The call for Biden to step aside also includes candidates who haven’t even gotten to Capitol Hill yet.
“It is simply not enough for Joe Biden to just bow out of the race. If he’s unfit to run in 2024, he is unfit to hold office. He MUST resign,” said a release from Ret. Col. Laurie Buckout, who is challenging Democratic Rep. Don Davis in North Carolina’s 1st District. That race is rated as a Toss-up by Inside Elections.
Two more Republicans in Toss-up races are singing from the same hymnal.
“If Joe Biden is not fit to run, he is unfit to serve. I am formally calling on Joe Biden to resign the Presidency because his continued presence in the situation room is a national security threat,” said Ohio Republican Bernie Moreno in a release. He’s challenging Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown.
“Montanans will never forget that Jon Tester lied to all of us when he engaged in the Left’s coverup and said Biden is 100% with it,” said Montana Republican Tim Sheehy in a release. “The truth is, the truth is, Joe Biden must immediately resign as President of the United States — because if you’re not fit to even run for president, you’re not fit to serve as Commander-in-Chief for one day longer.”
You get the point.
So what is the potential fallout from Republicans’ pressure campaign?
First of all, Republicans have created an arbitrary standard of coupling serving in office with campaigning, which in reality are different functions. Serving as a president doesn’t have to include a rigorous, nationwide travel schedule effectively required for a national campaign. And there’s nothing beyond custom that requires someone who is eligible for another term to seek one. But Republicans are also setting a precedent that could haunt them later.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, 82, has had multiple, public elderly moments. He’s not likely to run for reelection in 2026 because of his age, so should he resign early? Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa is 90 years old, so should he continue to serve if he doesn’t commit to campaigning in 2028?
Coming back to the current cycle, trying to keep the attention on Biden’s age and faculties might seem like a good idea and benefit Republicans by owning the Democrats, but it could also hurt the GOP’s effort to win the grand prize in 2024.
Time will tell, but it’s possible Republicans already hurt themselves by harping on Biden’s age and forcing Democrats’ weakest candidate from the race. Now the Democrats are riding with Vice President Kamala Harris who, at a minimum, has energized the party base beyond anything Biden was able to do. Pushing Biden out of office completely could hurt Republicans even more.
Biden is giving a national speech Wednesday night from the Oval Office about his decision to drop out of the race, and while there’s no indication he would even consider it, a Biden resignation would be yet another historical event that would garner at least a few days of news coverage.
It would also elevate Harris to the top job. There would be at least a couple weeks of news coverage about the first woman president in the nation’s 248-year history and various aspects of the historic transition. Harris would also have the full trappings of the office. For any voters who have difficulty envisioning her as president, she would be the president. Republicans would be an afterthought for at least a little while.
It would give Harris the opportunity to do the job. If there’s a moment of crisis, she could demonstrate her decision-making skills. And from a campaign perspective, a Biden resignation would give her a slightly different message. She could say, “Give me a chance. I just got into this job. Give me a full term, more time to demonstrate I can do this.”
That won’t sway any base Republicans. Trump’s core supporters who think Biden is a terrible president would likely think the same about a new President Harris. But it’s not an unreasonable argument to softer, independent voters who Harris needs in order to win. In other words, moderate voters may be less likely to fire someone who just got the job.
Of course it’s possible that Harris becomes president following a Biden resignation and fails, even in a short amount of time. She could fumble a crisis or get pinned with current problems that plague any resident of the Oval Office, even if those issues are not a result of her actions.
If Democrats come to the conclusion that helping Harris become president could boost her chances before Nov. 5, a Biden resignation could be the October surprise everyone is always looking for. And if Republicans complain, then Democrats can just say it was their idea all along.
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