Amid questions about whether President Joe Biden should step aside, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich expressed support for the incumbent, but said Biden “needs to continue to demonstrate that his debate performance was just a bad night, and that he has a clear path to defeating Donald Trump.”
After Biden’s widely panned debate performance last week against former president Donald Trump, some Democrats have called on Biden to step aside from the Democratic nomination for president.
Heinrich did not go that far, saying in a statement “I love Joe Biden” and calling him “the most accomplished President of my lifetime” as well as “a genuinely wonderful human being.”
But Heinrich stopped short of fully backing Biden.
“What I care most about is the preservation of our democracy,” Heinrich said. “President Biden needs to continue to demonstrate that his debate performance was just a bad night, and that he has a clear path to defeating Donald Trump. Our democracy hangs in the balance.”
Biden has said a number of times that he will remain in the race, including on Monday.
Heinrich himself is up for reelection this year, seeking a third term in the U.S. Senate. Heinrich will face Republican Nella Domenici in the general election.