Several European politicians called on the US Democratic Party to replace Joe Biden after his failure at the debate over concerns about Trump’s presidency and his Ukraine policy, according to Daily Mail.
Senior European politicians are expressing apprehension over future elections in November as Joe Biden’s flopped debate performance shows that he is incapable of defeating Donald Trump in his current condition. They are wary that a Trump victory might turn out to be a disaster for Ukraine. One member of the Ukrainian parliament, Oleksiy Goncharenko, said:
We’re very concerned because we, more or less, understand what it means for Ukraine, a Biden presidency, and we really don’t know what it means for Ukraine, a Trump presidency.
Since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, President Biden has been a tremendous supporter of Ukraine, providing billions of dollars in military and humanitarian aid despite Russia’s warnings not to do so. The Kiel Institute data shows that under the Biden presidency, the US supplied or transferred $46.2 billion worth of arms and equipment to Ukraine between February 2022 and February 2024, representing about 0.18 per cent of GDP. On the other hand, Trump has not only threatened to cut spending to Kyiv, although raised doubts about the future of NATO and stated that if re-elected as president, the war would be over within 24 hours.
After the debate, many world media outlets criticised Biden’s speech and the Party, urging them to think about who could replace the 81-year-old president. In addition to the world media, many European politicians criticised the speech.
Politicians call on Biden to resign
German politicians have openly criticised the debate and called for President Biden to be replaced in the November elections. For instance, Michael Link, a German politician from the FDP, said the Democratic Party should “consider who is best placed to prevent Trump from returning to office using his usual methods – allegations, insults, distortions, outright lies.” In addition, the German CDU foreign policy specialist Norbert Röttgen said:
This night will not be forgotten. The Democrats have to rethink their choices now. And Germany must prepare at full speed for an uncertain future. If we don’t take responsibility for European security now, no one will.
It is worth mentioning that while German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had earlier welcomed Biden’s re-election prospects, a senior defence ministry official in the ruling coalition has now expressed dissatisfaction with Biden’s performance. Despite, Scholz’s spokesman did not comment on the specifics of the debate. Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, of the liberal FDP party, told the Rheinische Post paper:
The fact that a man like Trump could become president again because the Democrats are unable to put up a strong candidate against him would be be a historic tragedy that the whole world would feel.
Matteo Renzi, a centrist who was close to the Democrats while serving as Italy’s prime minister, said President Joe Biden had served the United States with honour but now it was time to step aside with honour:
Joe Biden can’t do it. He doesn’t deserve an inglorious ending, he doesn’t deserve one. Changing horses is a duty for everyone.
Poland’s foreign minister, Radek Sikorski, called for Biden’s resignation as he compared the situation to the collapse of the Roman Empire and compared Biden to the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius. He said:
Marcus Aurelius was a great emperor but he screwed up his succession by passing the baton to his feckless son Commodus (He, from the Gladiator). Whose disastrous rule started Rome’s decline. It’s important to manage one’s ride into the sunset.
Despite, Donald Tusk, the Polish prime minister, was the only European leader to openly criticise Mr Biden’s debate performance. He said:
They certainly have a problem. Yes, these reactions are unambiguous. I was afraid… in the sense: it was to be expected that in a direct confrontation, in a debate, it would not be easy for President Biden.
Guy Verhofstadt, a member of the European Parliament and former Prime Minister of Belgium, stated as follows:
American democracy killed before our eyes by gerontocracy!
Allies in the Democratic Party immediately acknowledged Biden was struggling to speak up in the debate, while others warned that there was “panic” in the party and it was finally time for a change. In addition, Moreover, House Speaker Mike Johnson on Friday urged President Biden’s cabinet to begin discussions about applying the 25th Amendment to force him to resign. Biden, for his part, managed to calm his supporters slightly at a rally in North Carolina on Friday, speaking with more energy and with a pledge to protect democracy. The president told his supporters:
“I don’t walk as easily as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to. But I know what I do know: I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong. And I know how to do this job. I know how to get things done. And I know like millions of Americans know, when you get knocked down you get back up. I would not be running again if I did not believe with all my heart and soul that I can do this job.”
Despite Biden’s confident performance, many remain convinced that one speech is not enough to rehabilitate himself after a failed debate. Moreover, it is not enough to win the election in November. Biden, in turn, refused to resign after his remarks during the debate, justifying his refusal by saying that despite his age, he still knows how to do his job and will protect American democracy from perceived threats.
