September 12, 2023 11:21 PM
A top Washington Post columnist called for President Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 presidential race.
On Tuesday, longtime political columnist David Ignatius began by giving a glowing review of the Biden presidency, crediting him with successfully fighting his self-proclaimed “battle for the soul of this nation.” However, he added that though Biden was the best person to run in 2020, the opposite is true in 2024. Citing concerns over Biden’s age and the unpopularity of Vice President Kamala Harris, Ignatius urged the president to drop out lest he risk losing to former President Donald Trump.
“I don’t think Biden and Vice President Harris should run for reelection,” Ignatius wrote. “It’s painful to say that, given my admiration for much of what they have accomplished. But if he and Harris campaign together in 2024, I think Biden risks undoing his greatest achievement — which was stopping Trump.”
He showed particular concern toward Biden’s age, urging that it isn’t simply a problem for a niche group.
“According to a recent Associated Press-NORC poll, 77 percent of the public, including 69 percent of Democrats, think he’s too old to be effective for four more years,” he wrote. “Biden’s age isn’t just a Fox News trope; it’s been the subject of dinner-table conversations across America this summer.”
As for Harris, Biden’s other major “liability,” Ignatius warned that simply choosing another vice president wouldn’t work, as it could anger black women and fracture the vote in 2024.
He warned Biden to make the decision quickly. “Time is running out,” he wrote.
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“In a month or so, this decision will be cast in stone,” he wrote. “It will be too late for other Democrats, including Harris, to test themselves in primaries and see whether they have the stuff of presidential leadership. Right now, there’s no clear alternative to Biden — no screamingly obvious replacement waiting in the wings. That might be the decider for Biden, that there’s seemingly nobody else. But maybe he will trust in democracy to discover new leadership, ‘in the arena.'”
Ignatius has been a major supporter of Biden, showing some cracks beneath the surface of the apparent unity of Democrats gathering behind the president.