Top Democrats who just days ago defended Biden are changing their tunes
Rep. Ritchie Torres changed his public stance on Wednesday and urged Democrats to look at the “cold hard numbers.”
On Monday, Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York chided his fellow Democrats for the “drip, drip, drip of public statements of no confidence” about President Biden. On Wednesday, Rep. Torres added to that drip himself, though did not explicitly call on the president to bow out of the race.
Even those who publicly support the president are sounding the alarm: Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who has affirmed that he is behind Biden since the debate, said on Wednesday that he is “deeply concerned about Joe Biden winning this November.”
As Democrats remain divided on how to deal with Biden — and vibes on Capitol Hill remain terrible — recent poll numbers are pouring gasoline on an already blazing fire. The Cook Political Report showed Democrats losing ground in six key battleground states, which evidently worried Rep. Torres. Prior to sharing his updated statement, he posted a picture of the new assessment on Twitter with the caption, “Alarming and sobering.”
In his statement from Monday, Rep. Torres said that the ongoing debate about Biden’s reelection only risked weakening his candidacy, whereas he seemed more focused on quantitative than qualitative assessments in his updated stance.
“What matters is not how we feel but what the numbers tell us,” Rep. Torres said Wednesday. “An unsentimental analysis of the cold hard numbers — which have no personal feelings or political loyalties — should inform what we decide and whom we nominate.”
Rep. Torres minced no words during an interview Wednesday with CNN, warning of the down-ballot effects of the election and saying that “if we are going on a political suicide mission, we should at least be honest about it.”
Rep. Torres and Sen. Blumenthal’s offices did not immediately respond to our requests for comment.
Other Democrats are growing increasingly nervous, too. Nancy Pelosi failed to forcefully endorse the president during a talk show appearance on Wednesday, instead offering an uncharacteristically vague response.
