Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said Sunday that President Biden should "pass the torch."Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call/ZUMA
On Sunday, another influential Democratic ally—Sen. Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.)—joined the growing calls for President Joe Biden to make way for a new Democratic candidate to take on former President Donald Trump.
“I came to this decision with a heavy heart that I think it’s time to pass the torch to a new generation,” Manchin, who was a Democrat before switching his registration to Independent earlier this year, told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday morning. (The senator made a tour of the Sunday news shows to make the announcement, also appearing on ABC’s This Week and CBS’s Face the Nation.)
Manchin said that if Biden were to step aside, the replacement should be chosen through “an open process”: “I think we have a lot of talent on the bench, a lot of good people.” He added that he’s “partial to governors,” floating Gov. Andy Beshear (D-Ky.) and Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-Pa.) as examples of politicians who have “brought people together.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.) and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-Mich.) have also been widely floated as potential candidates, though Manchin didn’t mention them. (Manchin has already shut down speculation that he would run, saying that he “rejected” Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) when she texted him suggesting he run after the debate.)
Governors, notably, would not include Vice President Kamala Harris. When ABC host Martha Raddatz pointed that out to Manchin, specifically noting passing over a Black woman, he said: “This is not about race and gender,” adding, “healthy competition is what it’s all about, and that’s why I believe it should be an open process.” When Raddatz directly asked if he thinks Harris could beat Trump, Manchin said, “the process will show that.”
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) have also said Biden should leave the race.
The situation has only grown bleaker for Biden—but whether or not he’s willing to accept that reality remains to be seen. White House Senior Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates has, for most of the week, continually shut down rumors that Biden will leave the race.
A new poll out today from the Detroit Free Press highlights just how steep the hill would be for Biden to climb if he stays in the race: it shows Trump leading Biden by 7 points in the battleground state of Michigan, which Biden won in 2020.
