Former Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Tuesday that there are questions about the president Joe Biden‘s ability to serve after last week’s debate with Donald Trump were “legitimate,” adding that the same questions should be asked of the presumptive GOP presidential nominee.
“I think it’s a legitimate question to say, is this an episode or is this a condition? When people ask that question, it’s legitimate — from both candidates,” Pelosi told MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell when asked if she had concerns about Biden.
“We should tear apart everything we have [Trump] said the other day, because it was a bunch of lies,” she added. “It’s very hard to debate someone when you have to undo or debunk everything they say. Both candidates are obligated to take the test that you want them to take, as far as their mental acuity and their health.”
Biden and his aides are in damage control mode after the president’s poor debate with Trump, trying to reassure panicked Democrats and donors. Biden is scheduled to hold a call with Democratic governors later this week as questions mount within his party about his political future.
Pelosi said Tuesday it was “essential” that Biden sit down for interviews with reporters to convince his party and the public that he can do the job. Biden is scheduled to interview ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos on Friday.
A spokesperson for Pelosi told HuffPost after this article was published that the speaker “has full confidence in President Biden and looks forward to his inauguration on January 20, 2025.”
While top Democrats continue to publicly support Biden, there are signs the dam is beginning to burst. On Tuesday, Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) became the first sitting Democrat in the House of Representatives to call on Biden to withdraw from the race.
“Our primary consideration must be who has the best hope of saving our democracy from an authoritarian takeover by a criminal and his gang,” Doggett said in a statement. “The stakes are too high to risk a Trump victory — too high a risk to assume that what couldn’t be turned around in a year, what wasn’t turned around in the debate, can be turned around now. President Biden saved our democracy by getting rid of Trump in 2020. He must not hand us over to Trump in 2024.”
Other lawmakers have also raised concerns about Biden’s performance during the debates and his campaign’s efforts to silence his critics.
“We have to be honest with ourselves that it wasn’t just a horrible night,” Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) told CNN on Tuesday.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) also said he was “quite shocked” by the debate.
“People want to make sure that … the president and his team are candid about his condition, that this was a real anomaly and not just the way he is today,” the senator added.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said his party should continue to stand behind Biden on Tuesday, throwing his support behind the beleaguered president despite calls for him to withdraw from the race.
“I stand with Joe Biden,” Schumer said Tuesday at an event in Syracuse, New York, according to NBC News. “We’ve worked hard together for four years and delivered a lot for America and central New York, and I stand with Biden.”
When asked if he thought Biden was fit to serve another term, Schumer reportedly said, “Yes, I think so.”
