- File: James Buck
- U.S. Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.)
U.S. Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) on Monday chastised the campaign of President Joe Biden for its “dismissive attitude” toward questions about the candidate’s age and fitness, which he said were legitimate in the wake of Biden’s poor debate performance last week.
In comments to news website Semafor, Welch, 77, criticized as “inappropriate” the way Biden’s campaign staff had swatted back growing calls for him to drop out of the race.
In particular, Welch took issue with a memo by Biden’s deputy campaign manager Rob Flaherty ridiculing those calling for Biden to step aside as part of a “bedwetting brigade” and calling the strategy a surefire way to ensure Donald Trump’s victory in November.
“I really do criticize the campaign for a dismissive attitude towards people who are raising questions for discussion," Welch told the site. "That’s just facing the reality that we’re in.”
Welch said the entire campaign — “from the top levels of the Biden campaign to precinct captains in the Southside of Chicago”— needs to address the issue of the president’s fitness head-on.
“The campaign has raised the concerns themselves,” Welch said. “So then to be dismissive of others who raise those concerns, I think it’s inappropriate.”
Welch’s remarks expounded on comments he made to Seven Days the day after the debate, when he acknowledged the poor performance as a “setback” but largely stressed how much he admires and respects Biden and views Trump as a threat to democracy.
“The president’s challenge was not so much to articulate his values or his accomplishments. He’s on solid ground there,” Welch said. “It was to address the age issue, and he intensified rather than alleviated apprehensions about that.”
Welch said Biden’s team needed to first acknowledge that setback internally and then assuage people's concerns.
“They have to have an energetic plan which they can execute, which has the president out in public demonstrating the capacity to do the hardest job in the world for the next four years,” Welch said.
Welch is the only member of Vermont’s congressional delegation to offer criticism of Biden’s performance or how he and his campaign are responding.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), 82, has said very little publicly. He told The Hill that Biden was "not very articulate, to say the least."
In comments to news website Semafor, Welch, 77, criticized as “inappropriate” the way Biden’s campaign staff had swatted back growing calls for him to drop out of the race.
In particular, Welch took issue with a memo by Biden’s deputy campaign manager Rob Flaherty ridiculing those calling for Biden to step aside as part of a “bedwetting brigade” and calling the strategy a surefire way to ensure Donald Trump’s victory in November.
“I really do criticize the campaign for a dismissive attitude towards people who are raising questions for discussion," Welch told the site. "That’s just facing the reality that we’re in.”
Welch said the entire campaign — “from the top levels of the Biden campaign to precinct captains in the Southside of Chicago”— needs to address the issue of the president’s fitness head-on.
“The campaign has raised the concerns themselves,” Welch said. “So then to be dismissive of others who raise those concerns, I think it’s inappropriate.”
Welch’s remarks expounded on comments he made to Seven Days the day after the debate, when he acknowledged the poor performance as a “setback” but largely stressed how much he admires and respects Biden and views Trump as a threat to democracy.
“The president’s challenge was not so much to articulate his values or his accomplishments. He’s on solid ground there,” Welch said. “It was to address the age issue, and he intensified rather than alleviated apprehensions about that.”
Welch said Biden’s team needed to first acknowledge that setback internally and then assuage people's concerns.
“They have to have an energetic plan which they can execute, which has the president out in public demonstrating the capacity to do the hardest job in the world for the next four years,” Welch said.
Welch is the only member of Vermont’s congressional delegation to offer criticism of Biden’s performance or how he and his campaign are responding.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), 82, has said very little publicly. He told The Hill that Biden was "not very articulate, to say the least."
“I wasn’t confident he could win before the debate,” Sanders told the Associated Press. “What we need on the part of the American people is a maturity right now — and that is to understand that what is important are the issues. And the difference between Trump and Biden: day and night.”
Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.) issued a statement to Seven Days after the debate that failed to mention the debate at all but framed the election as a choice between a felon and “an honest, decent President with a proven track record of fighting for working families.”
Howard Dean, a former Vermont governor, presidential candidate and Democratic National Committee chair, said after the debate that only pundits and “bit characters” were calling on Biden to step aside — and it was far too soon to panic. “I think in general when things like this happen, it’s best to wait 10 days to see how it all shakes out,” he said.
Comments
Comments are closed.
From 2014-2020, Seven Days allowed readers to comment on all stories posted on our website. While we've appreciated the suggestions and insights, right now Seven Days is prioritizing our core mission — producing high-quality, responsible local journalism — over moderating online debates between readers.
To criticize, correct or praise our reporting, please send us a letter to the editor or send us a tip. We’ll check it out and report the results.
Online comments may return when we have better tech tools for managing them. Thanks for reading.