Former Rep. Tim Ryan, Ohio Democrat, aired his concerns that President Biden staying in the race could affect the party’s candidates down ballot come November.
“I think you’re going to see a significant amount of pressure whether it’s today or tomorrow, sometime this week as the members come back, that this may be untenable for them to all want to run under a Biden ticket,” Mr. Ryan, Ohio Democrat, said on “Fox News Sunday.”
“It’s going to drag everybody else down, and I think that’s a major, major concern for Leader [Hakeem] Jeffries who’s a phenomenal leader, but I think his members, donors, activists around the country are very, very concerned,” he said.
Mr. Ryan was the first prominent Democrat to call on Mr. Biden to step aside and let Vice President Kamala Harris jump on the ticket.
Since then, five sitting House Democrats have called for the president to step down. Sen. Mark Warner, Virginia Democrat, is said to be working on a group of Democratic senators who will also call for the president to drop out.
Mr. Jeffries, New York Democrat, is meeting virtually with top Democrats on Sunday for a conversation that is expected to include Mr. Biden’s candidacy.
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Mr. Ryan said the calls for Mr. Biden to step down are “out of love.”
“We are not each other’s enemy,” he said. “We’re friends, we’re family members and we gotta heal, but we need a candidate that can come in and do that.”
“I particularly think Kamala Harris can come in and help us heal, but we need a candidate that can do that because the country is ready to move on from the Trump-Biden,” Mr. Ryan said.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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