Sen. Christopher S. Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut, said Sunday that President Biden's first television interview since his disastrous debate defeat did not allay deep concerns about the president's age and mental state and that he has much more work to do to convince voters that he is qualified to run for and win reelection.
“Voters have questions,” Murphy said on CNN's “State of the Union.”
He added: “Personally, I love Joe Biden. I'm not sure Friday night's interview adequately answered those questions. This is going to be a crucial week. I think the president needs to do more.”
Murphy said he would urge Biden to “hold town hall meetings, hold press conferences and show the American people that he's still the same old Joe Biden.”
He avoided directly answering whether Biden should step aside, saying, “I know there are a lot of voters out there who need to be convinced that they performed poorly in the debate on Thursday night.”
Murphy's carefully calibrated comments were among the first public alarm bells from Senate Democrats, who had remained largely silent since the debate more than a week ago but have grown increasingly concerned about Biden's ability to be their party's nominee. The remarks came as House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York was planning to convene House Democratic leaders later Sunday to discuss Biden's candidacy, at a time when several House members had already publicly called on the president to step aside.
Murphy's comments reflect the position of many Senate Democrats returning to Washington for a crucial week: They want to give Biden more room to prove himself or exit the race on his own terms before making a clear call to do so. But they also know that at this point, Biden may have no way to prove to voters that he's not too old to beat former President Donald J. Trump.
Murphy said he still believes Biden can beat Trump, but added that “the president needs to answer the questions voters have.” Murphy repeatedly insisted throughout the interview that Biden must prove himself in “unscripted” conversations with voters “this week.”
“They need to hear more from the president and I hope we'll see that this week,” he said.
The senator's message also appeared to be intended as a warning to the president and those around him that defiance over real questions about Biden's candidacy would not be tolerated. The president denied that some Democrats were calling on him to step aside, asserting that only divine intervention could persuade him to drop out of the race.
“Questions remain open,” Murphy said. “The clock is ticking.”
Sen. Angus King, D-Maine, echoed that message in a statement released through a spokesman. “The president believes he should seize every opportunity in the coming days to establish his ability to continue his campaign and his presidency through unscripted interviews and face-to-face conversations with constituents,” spokesman Matthew Fehling said Sunday. “Only through this public process can the president demonstrate that Thursday was merely a bad day and that his ability to clarify issues and seek common-sense solutions remains intact.”
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island publicly expressed concern last week about the campaign's candor about Biden's condition but stopped short of calling for him to resign, and Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont warned of “severe headwinds” for Democratic House and Senate candidates if they suffer a major defeat in November's presidential election.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) is also planning to convene Democratic senators this week to discuss the way forward and his concerns about Biden remaining the nominee. Warner has privately been troubled by Biden's debate performance and has expressed doubts about whether he can stay in the race and win reelection.
Katie Edmondson Contributed report.
