Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) confirmed on Tuesday that he told his Senate Democratic colleagues that he does not believe President Biden can defeat former President Trump in November and that it could imperil control of Congress.
Bennet, along with Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.), told Senate Democrats during their weekly luncheon earlier in the day that they do not think the president can defeat Trump.
The Colorado Democrat revealed in an interview on Tuesday night that he said as much, making him the first sitting Senate Democrat to publicly cast doubt on Biden’s ability to win following his disastrous debate performance almost two weeks ago.
“It’s true that I said that. I did say that behind closed doors,” Bennet told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins. “This race is on a trajectory that is very worrisome if you care about the country of this country.”
“Donald Trump is on track, I think, to win this election, and maybe win it by a landslide and take with it the Senate and the House,” Bennet said. “For me, this isn’t a question about polling. It’s not a question about politics. It’s a moral question about the future of our country and I think it’s critically important for us to come to grips with what we face if together we put this country on the path of electing Donald Trump again.”
Bennet did not go as far as some House Democrats and call for Biden to step aside from the party’s ticket. He noted that the party is in town this week, in part, to “have this discussion.” However, concerns from his colleagues have been clear, especially since they returned to Washington following the July 4th recess.
The Senate Democratic luncheon on Tuesday yielded little, though, according to members. They said that the meeting provided little clarity, leaving Democrats in limbo for the foreseeable future as Biden has made clear he has no plans to end his bid for a second term.
“The White House in the time since that disastrous debate, I think, has done nothing to really demonstrate they have a plan to win this election, that they have a convincing plan to win in the battleground states where we have to win in order to win this election and they need to do that,” Bennet said.
Despite the gloomy outlook from Bennet, some Senate Democrats have maintained confidence in Biden’s chances and have kept up their full-throated support. When asked three times about Biden during his weekly press conference, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) told reporters, “I’m with Joe.”