Several professors and politicians appeared on KSAT Sunday to share their reactions to President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from his 2024 re-election campaign.
In a letter to the United States on social media, President Biden said he believes it is in the best interest of the Democratic Party and of the country for him to end his re-election campaign.
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The announcement has brought national and Texas-affiliated politicians to sound off on this groundbreaking development.
Dr. Jon Taylor, a political science professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio, shared his opinions on Biden dropping out of the presidential race, saying it is “truly historic.” Taylor also mentioned Biden endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as the new nominee.
If Harris were to become the Democratic nominee for the 2024 presidential race, Taylor threw out a few names for who could be her running partner.
KSAT also spoke with Trinity University professor Juan Sepulveda, who worked under former US President Barack Obama and alongside Biden. Sepulveda said it was the right decision and also spoke on the announcement’s timing.
“He did the right thing,” Sepulveda said. “Very, very difficult decision to make for him and his family, and he was the only person who could make that decision.”
Republican congressman Chip Roy, who has been outspoken about Biden’s mental fitness for office, also commented on Biden stepping down.
“Most of us have been expecting this now,” Congressman Roy said.
Congressman Roy even filed a resolution calling on Vice President Kamala Harris to invoke the 25th Amendment. This would push for her to declare President Biden is unable to carry out his presidency, but Harris did not invoke the 25th Amendment.
“Everybody with eyes saw it in the debate. They’ve seen it since the debate, and the democrats have been struggling with the box that they created for themselves by, frankly, keeping up the false pretense that the President of the United States was mentally cognizant to carry out duties of the office,” Roy said.
“I do not believe that the President of the United States has the mental capacity to be in charge of the nuclear codes,” Congressman Roy said.
A common thread between Sepulveda and Congressman Roy is the lack of surprise toward Biden’s endorsement of Harris.
“It’s not surprising he picked her as his vice president,” Roy said. “She’s stood by him. He’s gonna stand by her.”
“He could have easily have said, I’m not going to do that, I’m just going to let it play itself out,” Sepulveda said. “But he decided, no, this is the person I selected to be my number two. And I feel very proud of her, and I’m going to support her and do whatever I need to do to get behind her.”
Democratic congressman Joaquin Castro said he ‘absolutely’ supports Biden’s decision to withdraw from the 2024 presidential election.
Castro praised Biden’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and his administration’s treatment of San Antonio.
Castro said everyone he has talked to since Biden’s announcement agrees to support Kamala Harris as the next Democratic nominee for the upcoming election.
Regarding a running mate, if Harris becomes nominated, Castro believes it should be someone who could help her win swing states. But ultimately, he said the running mate needs to be someone she wholeheartedly supports.
Republican congressman Tony Gonzales, who has been highly critical of Biden’s handling of border issues, does not believe Biden’s decision not to seek reelection will reset the presidential election.
Gonzales says it does not matter who the Democratic nominates for the 2024 presidential election because the Republican Party already has it won.
Gonzales shared how he’s more concerned about issues affecting people from San Antonio. He cited the recent CrowdStrike outage, housing crisis, and school safety as topics people should care about more.
When asked what would happen at the Democratic National Convention, Gonzales said Michelle Obama could potentially shake things up for the betterment of the party.