Democrats divided as Biden vows to stay in race despite mental fitness concerns

WASHINGTON (TND) — Lawmakers spoke about the divide among Democrats as a growing list of members call for President Joe Biden to step down as the Democratic party’s presumptive nominee following his poor debate performance and mounting concerns about his age and mental fitness.

“I think he did a poor performance on that debate, but I think he’s had a very good presidency for three and a half years. I think that has to be measured together,” Rep. Jim Costa, D-Calif., said. “Ultimately, President Biden’s going to make that determination and I think he’s listening to a lot of the Democrats in leadership positions.”

Biden’s debate performance set off alarms for many Democrats as his performance showed signs that he may be unfit to run for president.

In an exclusive interview with ABC News, Biden acknowledged his debate performance, calling it a “bad episode” while pushing against broader questions about his age and mental fitness.

“I don’t think the problem with President Biden is the age factor. It’s the mental acuity. We all know people who are 85 years old and sharp as a tack. We all know people 73 or 74 who can’t do their job again,” Rep. Glenn Grothman, R-Wisc., said.

Biden reaffirmed his commitment to stay in the race in a highly anticipated news conference at NATO, saying, “I am in this to complete the job.”