WATCH LIVE | PBS News Weekend Breaking New Coverage after Biden drops out of 2024 reelection race, endorses Harris
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Biden is still sidelined with COVID, but the debate over his campaign rages on
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REHOBOTH BEACH, Del./PROVINCETOWN, Mass. — President Biden remained sidelined from the campaign trail by a case of COVID in his beach house in Delaware on Sunday as Democrats continued to openly discuss whether he should continue his bid for a second term.
Biden has insisted he will stay in the race. His disastrous June 27 debate against former President Donald Trump fueled a growing chorus of calls from Democratic party officials and donors for a younger candidate to take over as their 2024 candidate.
On Sunday, Biden ally Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., urged Democrats to "coalesce" behind Biden as their nominee. "I believe he is as good as they get," Clyburn said on CNN's State of the Union. "Is he the only one? No, he's not the only one. And he is among the best that we can put forward and I stand with him until he changes his mind — if he should change his mind."
Clyburn said the party has rules that should be followed, and while he said there could be a "mini-primary" ahead of the party's convention, which starts on Aug. 19, he said that would be a disaster for the party. "It will come out the same way it came out in 1968, 1972 and 1980," he said — years when Democrats lost the presidential election after contested conventions.
State party chairs running campaigns in Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada and North Carolina — the seven key states for the 2024 race — also urged Democrats to focus on fighting Republicans instead of each other.
"Voters know Joe," they wrote in an open letter to Democrats, saying they see enthusiasm for Biden's candidacy on the ground. "We understand the anxiety. But the best antidote to political anxiety is taking action," they said.
Manchin become the 5th senator to publicly urge Biden to step aside
Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.V., became the fifth senator to publicly encourage Biden to give up his race. Manchin, a lifelong Democrat from a red state, registered as an independent in May.
"I think it'll leave him with a tremendous legacy as one of the greatest leaders that we've had," Manchin said on CNN. "I came to the decision with a heavy heart, that I think it's time to pass the torch to a new generation," he said, praising Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro as two strong options.
Other Democrats have thrown their support behind Vice President Harris. On Saturday, Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., called her a "tenacious prosecutor" with the experience to beat Trump. "Joe, I love you and respect you. But the stakes are too high to fail. It's time to pass the torch to Kamala," Takano said in a statement.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. — who has not called for Biden to leave the race — said Harris would unite the party if Biden changes his mind, and praised her for her work on economic issues and abortion rights. "Look — if you're running against a convicted felon, then a prosecutor like Kamala is really a good person to make that case," Warren said on MSBNC.
Biden had been pushing back on concerns about his age and abilities, doing a flurry of events in swing states, as well as as a solo press conference and several interviews. But that came to a halt when he tested positive for COVID last week.
His campaign has said Biden would return to the trail this week once he gets the green light from his doctor. On Sunday, White House physician Dr. Kevin O'Connor said Biden's symptoms had "improved significantly" and he continues to take the antiviral Paxlovid.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said Biden needs to do more to show he can stay in the race. "There's a lot of very reasonable skepticism out there. I mean, a lot of us, we're holding our breath. When he gives a speech — will he get it right? Will he make a mistake? We all saw the debate. You can't unsee that," Polis said on CNN.
Harris is in the spotlight as Biden is sidelined
Harris has not publicly engaged in the debate. She was back on the campaign trail this weekend, raising money for the Biden-Harris ticket on Cape Cod. In a large tent near the the harbor, hundreds of Democratic donors cheered and waved fans imprinted with "Veeptown" — a play on P-Town, as the beach town known for its LGBTQ history and community is called.
Harris praised Biden, saying she was "testifying" that he fights for "everyday working Americans." She focused on Trump's policies that removed protections for discrimination for LGBTQ people for health care, employment, and students and his ban on transgender military service.
She said Trump's running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, "undoubtedly will be a rubber stamp for Trump's extremist anti-LGBTQ agenda," citing legislation he proposed that would ban gender-affirming care. That prompted a yell of "Go get 'em, Kamala!" from one of the donors.
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