Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown), the Democratic nominee for Senate in New Jersey this year, said today that he has “concerns” about President Joe Biden’s ability to remain atop the Democratic presidential ticket after a disappointing debate performance last month.
“I do have concerns,” Kim said. “If [Biden’s team] want to rebut some of what people are concerned about, that’s on them. But dismissing it would not be right. People have concerns – I mean, this is the presidency of the United States. So I think it’s very important to be upfront and honest about where things are.”
Kim said he was “still thinking this through” and declined to make any definitive proclamations, but he did indicate he was open to discussions about replacing the 81-year-old Biden with another nominee, as a small number of congressional Democrats have said should be done.
“The question is, can Biden win, and is there somebody that can potentially be stronger? That’s what I’m digging in on right now and trying to think through,” he said. “I don’t think it’s a problem for us to think through this and be absolutely thorough in terms of what this last stretch of the campaign could look like… There’s enough time that if there needs to be a switch, I think that could be done.”
Kim’s opinion of course carries weight as one of New Jersey’s 13 members of Congress, but he is also in an especially prominent position as the Democratic nominee for Senate – essentially making him the statewide standard-bearer for New Jersey Democrats this year. And Kim’s Republican opponent, Curtis Bashaw, has already gone on the attack, saying Kim should take a more definitive stance on Biden’s candidacy.
“It’s a simple question,” Bashaw said on Twitter. “New Jerseyans deserve an answer.”
Another New Jersey congressman, Rep. Rob Menendez (D-Jersey City), was much less forthcoming on his opinions when approached by the New Jersey Globe today. Asked whether he would share his thoughts on Biden and the presidential election, Menendez simply said, “No.”
Yesterday, three New Jersey House Democrats – Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Ewing), Bill Pascrell (D-Paterson), and Donald Norcross (D-Camden) – each affirmed that they remain behind Biden, aligning with many of their colleagues in support of the president.
“I’m comfortable with Biden being the presidential nominee,” Watson Coleman said. “I thought he had a bad [debate] night, but I don’t think that speaks anything about his ability to run for the office and to win the office.”
Rep. Frank Pallone (D-Long Branch) and Senator Cory Booker, meanwhile, said little about Biden himself and instead focused on the necessity of beating former President Donald Trump. That, too, was a focus of Kim’s, who said that winning up and down the ballot in November is ultimately the most important consideration in his mind.
“I want to see Donald Trump defeated, I want us to win back the House, and I want us to hold onto the Senate,” Kim said. “I recognize no one here fully controls what happens next, but I hope that me and my colleagues can really think this through and figure out how it is that we’re going to win.”