Democratic Rep. Jake Auchincloss (Mass.) on Sunday expressed confidence that President Biden “could” win the election and is “fully fit” to be the nation’s leader right now, while noting concerns he has about the Democrats’ prospects in November.
“Fox News Sunday” anchor Shannon Bream, speaking with Auchincloss, pointed to recent stories from other Democrats, including Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), who claimed the president did not recognize him at an event. She asked Auchincloss if Biden is “not good enough to win” and if he can currently govern.
“First of all, I do think Joe Biden could win the election in November. Whether he’s the strongest candidate to win the election in November is an open question,” he said. “I also think he is fully fit to be commander in chief right now. And frankly, his track record over the last three and a half years shows that this is the first president in American history who came into office and had to defend democracy at home and abroad.”
This comes as Biden faces increasing calls from members of his own party to withdraw from the race over concerns he will not be able to defeat former President Trump at the polls in November. The calls began earlier this month following his disastrous debate showing against Trump last month, during which the president’s speech frequently halted, and he appeared to lose his train of thought at times.
Auchincloss revealed he has concerns about the Democrats’ performance at the polls in November, while noting that the election is still four months away.
“If the election were held today, Democrats would be in trouble. I think there’s no empirical way to say otherwise,” he said. “But the election is four months from now. And we have not just very strong candidates at the House and Senate level, we also have strong surrogates. We’ve got [Vice President] Kamala Harris who can prosecute a case, which is good because Trump’s a convicted felon. We’ve got [Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg] who can talk about infrastructure in the economy for swing state voters. We got [Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo], a successful governor who is now leading the strategy to outcompete China.”
He contrasted these leaders with Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), whom he called a “MAGA shapeshifter.”
Biden has acknowledged his poor debate showing last month but maintains he intends to stay in the race.
A number of House Democrats, along with some senators, have publicly urged the president to step aside in the 2024 race.