Sen. Joe Manchin called for President Biden to step down as the party’s 2024 election nominee, becoming the fifth allied senator to do so and ramping up pressure on the president, who insists he is the only one who can defeat Donald Trump.
“I come with a heavy heart to think the time has come for him to pass the torch to a new generation,” Manchin (I., W.Va.) said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.” Manchin worked with Biden on key legislation, such as the infrastructure bill and the comprehensive health and climate bill. The lawmaker from West Virginia left the Democratic Party earlier this year, though he still caucuses with the party.
Previewing the potential fight to come, Manchin also broke with some other Democrats and called for an open process to pick a new nominee, a further sign that the party has no clear consensus on what it would do if Biden did step down.
