MSNBC's Joe Scarborough has changed his mind on whether President Biden should drop out of the race, calling on Democrats to "take a deep breath" and give him time to make his own decision.
MSNBC's "Morning Joe" co-host Joe Scarborough has expressed a change of heart on whether President Biden should drop out of the race. After previously suggesting that Biden's time was up, Scarborough now believes Democrats should give him the space to make his own decision.
"Let’s be smart. Let’s take a deep breath, and let’s understand, it’s only July the 5th. Such an historic decision should not be made in haste," Scarborough said on his show Friday.
Scarborough Reverses Stance, Now Urges Democrats to Honor Biden, Give Him Time
Scarborough's comments come after a week's absence from the airwaves following a planned vacation. Upon his return, he acknowledged the backlash Biden's campaign has faced following his disastrous debate performance on June 27.
"No doubt, there’s panic all around. I said eight days ago that the president needed to consider getting out, said that we needed to give it time, needed to see what’s going to happen. And I think we’re still there," Scarborough said.
Scarborough Reverses Stance, Now Urges Democrats to Honor Biden, Give Him Time
However, Scarborough emphasized that it was still too early to make a definitive decision. He argued that Biden, who has been on the ballot for 54 years, deserved time and space to make his own determination.
"I mean, it is July the 5th. This happened eight days ago. And decision time is not upon us yet," Scarborough said. "And though it may be coming soon, I think we should first honor a man who was first on the ballot 54 years ago by giving him the time and the space to make his decision before we tell him that we’ve made ours."
Scarborough Reverses Stance, Now Urges Democrats to Honor Biden, Give Him Time
Scarborough, who has been a staunch supporter of Biden on MSNBC, previously questioned Biden's re-election chances after the debate. He compared Biden to Donald Trump, asking if any corporation would keep a CEO who performed as poorly as Biden did.
However, in his latest comments, Scarborough defended Biden's presidency as an "unqualified success." He stressed that Biden needed to assure his party and supporters that he was capable, but cautioned Democrats against panicking.
Scarborough Reverses Stance, Now Urges Democrats to Honor Biden, Give Him Time
"He needs to answer the question, is he capable of moving forward? He knows he needs to answer that question. He needs to answer it in interviews. He needs to answer it in press conferences. He needs to answer it at the NATO summit. He needs to answer it in everything that he does," Scarborough said.
Scarborough urged Democrats to take their time and get the decision right, noting that American democracy was at stake.
"So, Democrats, you better get this right. You’d better think through it. You better take your time. You better take a deep breath, and you better get this right. And if you do, America will follow you," he said.
