George Clooney urges Joe Biden to quit the Presidential race: “he cannot win the fight against time"
George Clooney has strongly urged Joe Biden to step down from the US presidential race, following Nancy Pelosi's evasion of questions about his candidacy.
The Hollywood actor and influential Democratic supporter remarked that while the president has triumphed in numerous challenges throughout his career, "but the one battle he cannot win is the fight against time".
His remarks followed Mrs. Pelosi, the former Speaker of the House, expressing concern within the party, indicating that time was "running short" for Mr. Biden, aged 81, to determine his continuation in the race following his challenging debate against Donald Trump.
The president has consistently reiterated his resolve to stay on as the Democratic party's nominee and defeat Trump, aged 78, in the November elections.
Clooney expressed in the New York Times that it was "devastating to say it", but the Joe Biden he encountered at a recent fundraising event three weeks ago was not the same Biden from 2010. The actor noted that Biden wasn't even the Biden from 2020.
"He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate," Clooney shared.
The fundraiser, hosted by Clooney in Los Angeles and attended by Julia Roberts and Barbra Streisand, set a new record by raising approximately $30 million in one night for the Biden campaign.
The Biden team responded to the Hollywood star's criticism, with an unnamed source telling US media: “The President stayed for over 3 hours [at the fundraiser], while Clooney took a photo quickly and left.”
The president's campaign highlighted that he attended the fundraiser immediately after arriving in Los Angeles from Italy, where he had participated in the G7 summit.
In his opinion piece, Clooney stated: "Our party leaders need to stop telling us that 51 million people didn’t see what we just saw."
"This is about age. Nothing more," he added. "We are not going to win in November with this president."
Clooney mentioned that his concerns echoed those of "every" lawmaker he had conversed with in Congress.
When asked for a response, Mr. Biden's campaign pointed to a letter the president sent to Democrats in Congress, reaffirming his strong commitment to his candidacy and defeating Trump.