Kansas Democrats honor Biden’s withdrawal from race; GOP lawmakers demand his resignation • Kansas Reflector

TOPEKA — U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids and Gov. Laura Kelly were among the Kansas Democrats who praised President Joe Biden’s commitment to public service on Sunday, while U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall and U.S. Rep. Ron Estes questioned the president’s ability to see out the final six months of his term.

Biden said on social media that he would withdraw from running for re-election and urged the Democratic Party to nominate Vice President Kamala Harris.

“For more than five decades,” Kelly said, “President Biden has made it his life’s work to make our country better for hardworking Americans. Above all, he has been steadfast in his desire to protect democracy in a time of hyperpolarization and division. I thank him for his service and steadfast leadership.”

Davids, who serves the 3rd District and is running for a fourth term in Congress, said Biden has restored decency to the presidency after President Donald Trump’s single term.

“By dropping out of the presidential race today, he has once again put the future of our country first,” Davids said.

Trump lost to Biden four years ago, but accepted the Republican Party nomination for the third time last week at the party conference in Milwaukee.

Marshall, a Republican who entered the U.S. Senate in 2021, said Biden should resign. On January 6, 2021, Marshall joined a small group of dissident Republican senators who objected to the counting of the electoral votes from Pennsylvania and Arizona in the presidential election that Biden won in 2020.

“If Joe Biden is not fit to serve another term, he should resign immediately,” Marshall said. “If he is not fit to campaign, he should not have the nuclear codes. It’s that simple.”

Estes, a Republican who represents the Wichita-based 4th District, said Biden should resign immediately. Estes said Biden’s decision to suspend his campaign was a “recognition of something Americans have long recognized: He is not fit to be president, which also means he can no longer serve as commander in chief.”

Estes said Vice President Kamala Harris was among a group of Democrats and journalists who “shamefully ignored and deliberately misled the American people by concealing President Biden’s true cognitive state.” The congressman’s statement made no reference to the dozens of Democrats who urged Biden to withdraw.

Kelly Arnold, former chair of the Kansas Republican Party, said it might be a mistake to push for Biden’s resignation. He said it didn’t make sense to invite Harris to run for president so she could run as an incumbent candidate in the November election.

“Hey, fellow Republicans,” said Arnold, the state GOP chairman from 2013 to 2019. “Maybe we should reconsider the calls for Biden to resign. I don’t know why we would want to elevate Kamala to the presidency when she’s running for president. How does that strategy help us defeat her?”

Former U.S. Congresswoman Nancy Boyda, a Democrat running for the 2nd Congressional District, said on June 28 that Biden should end his campaign for president.

“With a heart full of compassion, I say publicly what all of us as Kansas residents, Democrats, and civic-minded people know must happen. It is time for President Biden to suspend his campaign and retire at the end of his term. It is imperative that we have a nominee who can defeat Donald Trump,” Boyda said.

She said Biden deserved credit for preventing another four years of Trump’s “scandalous judicial appointments, historic tax cuts for powerful corporations, and the further erosion of our global standing in the eyes of our allies and enemies abroad.” She said Biden’s accomplishments during his term stood in stark contrast to those of his “most inept predecessor.”

Matt Kleinmann, who is also campaigning for the Democratic Party nomination in the 2nd District, said Biden led the nation with “dignity and resilience during one of the most challenging times in our history.” He said Harris was a steadfast advocate for the United States when he was vice president.

“I fully support her efforts and look forward to working with her or whoever the next presidential nominee is,” Kleinmann said. “We need leaders who will fight for economic fairness and protect the interests of all Americans, not just the wealthy.”

Prasanth Reddy, one of two candidates vying for the Republican nomination for Congress in the 3rd District, raised the question of Biden’s competence to remain president, but framed the question in terms of David’s re-election campaign: “If President Biden is not in good enough shape to run, how can she continue to support him as president?”