Liberal 'Atlantic' journalist demands Biden 'must resign' immediately, hand power to Harris

A new article from liberal outlet The Atlantic called on President Biden to abandon his re-election campaign and resign from office for the sake of saving American democracy.

The piece, written by Atlantic staff writer Adam Serwer on Wednesday, demanded that Biden abdicate his office, making Vice President Kamala Harris president, as the recent debate raised questions about his mental decline.

"Biden must resign … to give American democracy its best chance of surviving," Serwer wrote.

Like many other media pieces criticizing Biden’s June 27 debate performance against former President Trump, Serwer argued that it "confirmed that he has aged dramatically over the past four years."

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An article published in The Atlantic declared President Biden "must resign" from office following his debate performance last week. (Getty Images)

"Biden was very old to begin with, and at the debate he appeared far more visibly diminished than he has in the past," he wrote. Serwer acknowledged that it may have just been a bad night, but said Biden’s team hasn't dismissed those concerns.

"Now, perhaps it really was just a bad night, and Biden remains as sharp as he was in 2020. If that’s the case, then he should be able to make the kind of public appearances necessary to quell these complaints. If he proves himself capable of doing so, I’ll happily acknowledge error. But after a week of disastrous coverage about his mental fitness, he has not. That is unavoidably ominous."

Serwer added that Biden’s debate was the one chance to calm "fears about his age rather than confirming them," especially since he’s been "behind in the polls prior to the debate."

The writer said Biden should drop out of the race so that there’s less of a chance of Trump winning the election, but added that the president should resign from office altogether. 

"If Biden is incapable of campaigning because of his deterioration, he is also not capable of being president. And if he is incapable of being president, then he should resign and allow Vice President Kamala Harris to take the oath of office," Serwer wrote.

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Despite calls for him to suspend his presidential campaign, Biden recently said he's "not going anywhere." (AP Photo/Artie Walker Jr.)

He also made a case for Harris.

"The earlier Biden resigns, the faster the Democratic Party can move to reunite behind the new nominee and concentrate its efforts on keeping Trump from returning to the White House. Harris would become the party’s presumptive nominee, enjoying the prestige and advantages of incumbency."

"She is also the only candidate who can legally access the financial war chest the Biden campaign has amassed," he added. And though he acknowledged that the Trump campaign will work to paint her as the "DEI president," the faster she gets into the Oval Office, the faster she can prove that criticism wrong ahead of potential re-election.

"But if Harris actually governs the country – albeit for a short time – then those warnings become less believable. Americans will be able to judge her intentions for themselves."

Serwer concluded his piece, stating, "Biden should step aside from both the campaign and the presidency, and allow Harris to take her best shot at saving the country from those who would destroy it."

So far, Biden has expressed his commitment to remaining in the presidential race. During the White House July 4 celebration, Biden said, "I’m not going anywhere." White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden is "absolutely not" going to suspend his campaign.

Gabriel Hays is an associate editor for Fox News Digital.