Several Black faith leaders representing tens of thousands of Georgians announced their continued support for President Joe Biden’s reelection bid, saying on Thursday that calls for him to step aside should stop.
Biden has insisted that he will remain in the race.
“We just feel that this debate has gone on long enough,” said Bishop Reginald T. Jackson, presiding prelate of the 6th Episcopal District of Georgia, which is comprised of more than 500 churches and more than 96,000 members. “We are in a war — a war against Trump, a war against MAGA and a war against Project 2025.” Project 2025 is a controversial plan put forward by a conservative think tank called the Heritage Foundation, which maps out a plan for an overhaul of the federal government if former president Donald J. Trump is returned to the White House.
Concerns about his age have dogged the 81-year-old President, and his age has been cited by Republicans and his 78-year-old rival for weeks.
Calls for Biden to step aside dramatically increased after a poor debate performance in June hosted by CNN in Atlanta and a subsequent interview with ABC news anchor George Stephanopoulos that did little to ease concerns.
Black support has been critical for the Democratic Party, and a big factor in that support has been the work of Black religious leaders and their congregations.
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
In 2020, Georgia became a key battleground state, delivering a big win for Biden.
Jackson criticized the media for focusing on Biden’s age and not his accomplishments while in office. He said there’s not been such coverage of Trump, who has been convicted of 34 felonies and faces other court cases.
Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
“Rather than fight among ourselves, it’s a matter of fact that unless Joe Biden decides to step aside, he will be the nominee for the Democratic Party,” said Jackson. “We have to get to work and focus on educating, mobilizing and organizing people to get out to vote and, more importantly, giving them a reason to vote.”
Jackson said if Biden steps aside, he would support the new candidate.
Speaking on “Politically Georgia,” Jackson said the best candidate to beat Trump
‘He said Biden’s record on issues important to African Americas, such as lowering the unemployment rate, more funding for HBCUs and greater access to health care, have been “very impressive.”
He said the messaging to voters about his administration’s accomplishments has been lacking.
“The Democrats are the worst messengers in the world,” Jackson said. ““I think they need to go back to elementary school when it comes to messaging.”
“Let me give you an example,” he said. " if you take the issue of what the president is trying to do with school loans, Republicans have fought it, the courts have come out against it.”
Also speaking out was the Rev. Gerald Durley, pastor emeritus at Providence Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta, who is a few months older than Biden.
“I’ve watched the Kentucky Derby and I’ve watched the Preakness and I’ve seen horses stumble out of the gate,” said the veteran civil rights leader. “If you want to win, it’s hard to change horses or jockeys halfway around the track. I believe we still have a winning candidate, who stumbled.”
The average age of members of Congress has arisen before as an issue.
According to the Congressional Research Service, as of July 8, the average age at the beginning of the 118th Congress was 57.9 years for representatives and 64.0 years for senators.
There are at least 10 members of Congress older than Biden. according to a September article in the New York Times. Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley who is 90; Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell who is 82: and former House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi is 84.
Natalie Mendenhall contributed to this article.
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