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July 10, 2024 11:27 AM UTC

Senator Bennet Tells CNN that Joe Biden Can't Win in November

  • 29 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

UPDATE: Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also seems to be pushing for Biden to exit the race.

From The New York Times:

Pelosi suggested on Wednesday that President Biden still could reconsider his decision to remain in the presidential race, the strongest public signal yet from a senior member of his party that the matter is not yet settled.

Despite mounting concerns that his candidacy could cost Democrats not only the White House but both chambers of Congress, Mr. Biden has been unequivocal about his intention to seek a second term, telling members of Congress in a letter on Monday that his mind is made up and “I’m firmly committed to staying in this race.” On Wednesday, Ms. Pelosi said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that the president should continue to weigh his options.

“It’s up to the president to decide if he is going to run,” she said. “We’re all encouraging him to to make that decision. Because time is running short.”

—–

Colorado Senator Michael Bennet sat down for a lengthy interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Tuesday night in which he laid out in very stark terms his belief that President Joe Biden cannot defeat former President Donald Trump in November — and that Biden’s campaign struggles could also cost Democrats both chambers in Congress.

From CNN:

Bennet on Tuesday became the first Democratic senator to publicly say he doesn’t believe President Joe Biden is capable of winning reelection after his disastrous debate performance last month.

“Donald Trump is on track, I think, to win this election, and maybe win it by a landslide, and take with him the Senate and the House,” he told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins. “So for me, this isn’t a question about polling. It’s not a question about politics. It’s a moral question about the future of our country.”

“The White House, in the time since that disastrous debate, I think, has done nothing to really demonstrate that they have a plan to win this election,” the Colorado Democrat said. [Pols emphasis]

Here’s that full interview:

 

Bennet said a number of interesting things during his 10-minute interview on CNN. While he never specifically called for Biden to withdraw from the race for President, Bennet said everything else to make that case.

On polling numbers:

“Joe Biden was 9 point up at this time the last time he was running. Hillary Clinton was 5 points up [at this point in 2016]. This is the first time in more than 20 years that a Republican candidate has been [ahead in the polls] at this point in the campaign…

…Today, as we’re sitting here, [Trump] is three and a half points ahead in the polls. He was ahead before President Biden had that very unfortunate debate, and the lead has been growing. And we have four months to figure out how we’re going to save the country from Donald Trump.”

On down-ballot concerns:

“I think that we could lose the whole thing. And it’s staggering to me. I mean, Donald Trump has already been President. I think he’s the worst President that we’ve ever had.”

On the danger of Trump:

“The stakes could not be higher. I believe that if we elect Donald Trump President again, my generation of Americans will be the first generation to leave less opportunity — not more — to the kids coming after us…

…We cannot let that happen, and we don’t have to let that happen. We have to defeat the malignant figure that is Donald Trump.”

On why he isn’t calling for Biden to drop out of the race:

“We’re all here this week to have this discussion and have this debate. I’m sure President Biden has a different view of his prospects in this election than I do, but we should be having a discussion about that. And the White House, in the time since that disastrous debate, I think has done nothing to really demonstrate that they have a plan to win this election…and they need to do that. They have to demonstrate that to the American people.”

On whether he could see himself calling for Biden to drop out:

“Look, I have no pleasure in being here tonight or just saying what I said in the caucus…

…This is something for the President really to consider. And I believe that those of us who are in these elected offices have a moral obligation to the people we represent…to do everything we can to make sure that their future is as bright as it could be. And if we just sit on our hands — if we say, ‘We’re going to disregard what is plainly in front of us, and plainly in front of the American people,’ and we end up electing Donald Trump again as President of the United States, that’s going to be a huge tragedy beyond epic proportion. And it’s something I can’t live with…[Pols emphasis]”

…That would be an American tragedy: If we lose the House, if we lose the Senate.”

On what he’s hearing from Colorado:

“The people I represent in Colorado have deep concerns about whether or not the President can win this race.”

When asked by Collins if Colorado could now be a swing state in the Presidential race, Bennet flatly stated, “I don’t think it will put Colorado in play.”

Bennet also demonstrated a very human and personal understanding of what it must be like to be in Biden’s shoes at the moment:

“I can understand how hard it would be, if I were Joe Biden, to sit there and to say to myself, ‘After all I’ve worked for and after all I’ve accomplished, after all of the extraordinary public service I’ve given to the American people’…it would be so hard to acknowledge that, after all of that, you’re in the race of your lifetime with somebody you can’t beat. I think that’s probably really hard for him to acknowledge. I think it’s really hard for the people who are working for him to acknowledge. I think they have a moral obligation to look themselves in the mirror and say…we’re sure that we’re going to be able to win this race.” [Pols emphasis]

Again, while Bennet did not specifically call on Biden to drop out of the race for President — he definitely sounds like he’s close to crossing that line. CNN reported earlier on Tuesday that Bennet was among three Senators at the Senate Democratic lunch — including Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown and Montana Sen. Jon Tester — to speak out saying that Biden is likely to lose in November.

Bennet confirmed to Collins on CNN that none of his fellow Senators specifically called for Biden to leave the race, but concerns are clearly growing. This morning, Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal spoke to reporters with a similar message, saying “I am deeply concerned about Joe Biden winning this November.” While Blumenthal then reiterated that he still supports Biden, he also seems to be calling on Biden to listen to their concerns and make his own decision to leave the race.

Whatever happens next, Bennet deserves some credit for taking the plunge to say out loud what many of his colleagues are no doubt thinking to themselves. These are difficult conversations…but they are necessary.

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29 thoughts on “Senator Bennet Tells CNN that Joe Biden Can’t Win in November”

  1. If the worry is Biden won't finish the term… That's why we have a VP. So if you want to replace Biden with Harris why not have Biden run? You get both white guy and mixed lady. 

    If the thought is well he's old replace him with new. New has nothing. Nothing to punch, nothing to discuss, just a warm void to put your beliefs. You are not replacing Biden with NEW you would be replacing Biden with UNKNOWN. 

  2. In 2020, an incumbent President was down 9% in the July polling and came back to make a close race.  Calculated by national popular vote, Biden won 51.3% to Trump's 46.86%, or about 4.5% — roughly half of the polling show in July of 2020. In our arcane system, the race was much, MUCH closer:  a shift from Biden to Trump by "little more than 81,139 votes in 4 states would have changed the winner of this election." 

    In 2016, the July polls had Clinton at 43.0% to Trump at 37.5%.  Calculated by national popular vote, Clinton had 48.2% and Trump 46.2%, less than half the margin of those July polls.  And of course, the Electoral College gave Trump the win by roughly 78,000 votes in 3 states.

    While being ahead in polling rather than behind is preferable, polling is only one way of looking at the status of the race.  Allan Lichtman & his 13 keys to the White House approach weighed in this week in an interview with The National. :

    “All of those pundits and journalists and political operatives who say Biden should drop out have absolutely no track record in predicting elections,” he said during his Lichtman Live YouTube show, which has reached 22,000 subscribers due to a surge in election interest and curiosity about Prof Lichtman's prediction system.

    “Yet they claim to know what the Democrats should be doing to win this election, and once again, they’re trapped into looking at the polls. And all those same experts tracking the polls told us Hillary Clinton couldn’t lose.”

    While he hasn’t made his final election prediction yet, under Prof Lichtman’s 13 keys system, Mr Biden currently holds the advantage, with the incumbency key fully secured, among other keys such as a strong long-term economy, strong short-term economy and lack of major scandal.

    However, if Mr Biden decides not to run, Democrats would lose the incumbency key, and potentially lose the contest key if Mr Biden’s decision prompts a chaotic Democratic convention later in August….

    Prof Lichtman has also been critical of recent polls, insisting that this far before elections, they hold little, if any predictive value.

    “That's the same kind of mistake that led the pollsters and pundits to be so dramatically wrong in 2016, to be wrong in 1988 and to be wrong in 2012,” he said.

     

     

  3. Biden won in 2020 by 43,000 votes out of 12,000,000 cast in WI, AZ and GA. 

    Bar chart:  If 43,000 votes is one inch, then 12,000,000 is 23 feet.  That's how close Biden won in 2020.

    Thank you Senator Bennet for speaking truth to power that Biden will lose to Trump and will bring down the Senate and House with him.  Biden had 3 1/.2 years to tout his accomplishments and this race shouldn't be close –yet, here we are.  It's time for a new ticket to reset this election and turn the attention back to Trump with someone who can articulate the existential risk we are facing.

    1. And who would this new ticket be?  

      Also, with all the money the Biden campaign has, where would it go?  The only people who can legally use that money are Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.  They can't give that money to the DNC to give to someone else.  Someone would get arrested if they did so.   A new candidate would come out of a fractured Dem Convention w/ no money and two months to battle Trump.

      Finally, we're still on this and not talking about the accomplishments of the last four years?  Project 2025?  The myriad reasons Trump should not be a candidate for President, let alone be President again.  This isn't speaking truth to power.  This is just eating our own.

      1. I'm okay with about any new ticket.  An interesting idea that's been floated is to have a series of debates prior to the convention and then let the delegates decide.  I think Kamala Harris would have a presumptive lead among delegates.  Rather than a coronation of Harris, she would have earned the selection after this process.  Let the new nominee pick his/her VP candidate.  (I'm not worried about the money — I think Biden could direct it to whomever he wants, and new money would flow in like a Houston flood.)

        Due to the existential threat that all Dems realize we are facing, there would be little intraparty fighting after a new ticket was selected. 

        1. You should be worried about the money.  Biden cannot legally take money donated to HIS campaign and donate it to a new candidate.  If Kamala steps in, she could legally access it since she is part of the campaign.  Nobody else can.  And you don’t know that the money is just going to flow in.

          Now, all any of you are doing is pushing against an incumbent Democratic President and weakening him and the party in the face of said existential threat.   

          To say nothing of not having ideas as to who will replace Biden.

  4. Not one of the doubters has proposed a winner. None. Currently working to prevent Joe from winning is not a great idea. Once again Dems fall for the, well polished, push against the Dem candidate, push hard.  This is a Dem trait, executed since at least the 1960's. Worked against Kerry, almost worked against Clinton and Obama. Now against Biden.

  5. The whole discussion – including Bennet's comments – are more destructive than anything else. Is Putin pushing the disintegration? Okay, maybe not Putin – just the terrific skill that the Dems have in being their own worst enemy.

    Why not just reverse the ticket – Harris for Prez, Biden for VP. Wouldn't have to do the impossible of starting a new, unfunded campaign for someone else this late in the year, and we'd have two highly experienced Exec Branch experts running as the team they have been for 3 1/2 years. 

    You don't like it? Give me a better suggestion.

     

    1. First, the Biden fundraising has dried up as of today.

      Second, there is about $240 million in Biden related money.  About $150 million can be used by the DNC or PACs etc to support another candidate.  Even use of the remaining $90 million could be used by Harris or even another candidate because it’s a grey area of the law.

      i think a series of debates, including Joe Biden if he wished,  could be held before the DNC.  Then let all delegates be released and vote for whomever they think is the strongest to take on Trump.  We can’t do nothing because we are losing. Don’t gaslight me otherwise.

      1. Well good luck drowning in piss. The last poll showed trump leading by 3 points. I don't want to gaslight you obviously that's insurmountable. 

        1. Oh dear. ABC/Washington Post new poll out. The insurmountable has fallen to a tie. Biden has to pull out now before he starts polling better than trump otherwise Democrats will win. Quick the bed sheets are drying!

  6. Some very good points, all of you. However, how do you explain to loyal Democratic viewers who were heartsick at watching the debate that we really didn't see what we saw? To all viewers who have seen replays of Biden with his thousand-yard stare, his mouth agape, with no reaction at all to Trump's gibberish? I think Bennet is right.

  7. Biden wasn't the first incumbent President to have a shitty debate.

    Also, he did get some good hits on Trump.  Yeah, not enough, but he did get a few.  He wasn't totally unresponsive.

    1. So explain why the highly respected Charlie Cook Report downgraded all six swing states.

      Also, Larry Sabato while trying to spin in favor of Biden acknowledged that Trump would get far more than 300 electoral votes, ("but the popular vote is close!" while his head spun like Lina Blair in the "Exorcist"). 

      Biden held the fewest press conferences of the last 4 presidents (almost half as many as Trump).  He did this to hide his decline.  Democrats fell in line to not challenge him for the nomination.  Now, we learn that he's "lost a step", but only after the primaries are done.  (And I foolishly donated another $200 to his campaign just hours before the debate.  Oops.)

      Now we hold our breath at every untelepromptered (and even those that use a teleprompter) event to see if he flubs it again.  I, and 74% of the American electorate are not willing to make that gamble.  The stakes are too high.  Force him and any others to debate many times before the convention.  Let the delegates, who after all are Democratic loyalists who believe winning the election is paramount, decide the nominee.  Of course, let the nominee decide his/her running mate. 

  9. I've only been Democrat for about a quarter of my voting-eligible years; not one day of regret since the switch. My old party is a steaming pile of shit.  I'm going to vote for whomever "isn't Trump". I just find our behavior in the last week insulting and unproductive.  Part of it is just the sheer pragmatism: if people believe Kamala would be the option (I do) then why all the pearl clutching?  She's already on the ticket. It's likely the #2 on either ticket is going to be at the helm before 2028.  I'm voting for ideals and the totality of those influencing the execution of those principles. I know many of you feel quite differently, that we can't win. I don't happen to share that opinion but I'll quietly honor yours. Let's roll up our sleeves and win this election. 
     

    PS: could Chuck Todd be any more insufferable?

  10. Let's just say it: Bennet's name is being thrown around as a possible VP nominee for a Harris Presidency. This is Bennet dog-whistling that he's okay with that.

      1. Exactly. Some of us remember what a poor campaigner Bennet was when he was first annointed as a candidate. Took him a long time to improve his skills which still pale next to someone like Moore. 

    2. We have a deep bench. I'm certainly a fan of Bennet for a lot of reasons and he's just one example of the breadth of leadership  waiting in the wings. You have to hand it to Nancy, she empowered the House leadership with her departure, which happened on her terms. Thankful to see some course correction by the NYT this morning.  At least someone had their pinkie on the trim tab for a nanosecond this morning 

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