Opinion | Dear Jill Biden, please tell your husband it’s time to step aside (2024)

We were thrilled and relieved when your husband won the 2020 presidential election against Donald Trump. In Philadelphia, church bells tolled, cars honked, and we were all out on the streets and on Independence Mall celebrating.

We have appreciated your family’s steady presence during the Jan. 6 insurrection, and have appreciated President Biden’s leadership through the covid-19 pandemic and numerous international crises. He has strengthened U.S. support for our NATO allies, introduced environmental protection measures while enhancing U.S. industrial growth and supported women’s reproductive health rights. He has reinforced our democracy at a perilous time in our country and in the world.

Now the prospect of Donald Trump’s return threatens the country, our democracy, our economy and our humanitarian values. He and his allies spread outrageous lies with a self-assurance that is breathtaking. We have entered a different political era, and this requires a unique leadership style.

We turn to you, Ms. Biden, with our request to urge your husband to end his campaign for the presidency. It is time for the younger generation to take charge in a manner that will stop Mr. Trump in his tracks and build on your husband’s legacy rather than allow it to be destroyed

We are all grateful to you for your extraordinary service to the country as first lady. Mr. Biden is lucky to have you, and we are as well.

Lillian Cohen, Virginia Clark, Helen Cunningham, Ellen B. Davis, Wendy Epstein, Carol Fixman, Blair Bartol MacInnes, Giuliana Pierson, Nora Pomerantz, Angeles Gonzalez Prado, Bonnie Raines, Lynne Yermanock Strieb, Joan Rollins Tropp, Beatriz Urraca, Victoria Bartol Vallely, Janet Weinberger, Flora Barth Wolf, Cordella Manning and Cintra Rodgers, Philadelphia

Dear Jill Biden,

Ever since I was old enough to vote, I have voted exclusively for Democratic candidates for president, vice president and Congress. I’ve always been proud of my liberal values — the same values that President Biden has so eloquently, forcefully and compassionately fought for throughout his career. It is therefore with great pain that I say to you now that I agree with the 72 percent of registered voters that feel Mr. Biden is no longer physically and mentally equipped to continue this campaign.

We all agree that the stakes are higher now than at any other moment in our lifetimes. But it is no longer true, as it was in 2020, that your husband is the most likely person to defeat Donald Trump. In fact, the longer he stays in the race, the more he increases the likelihood that Mr. Trump will win.

If it’s true that you have more influence on him than anyone, I implore you to coax him to drop out now, while he’s still able to do so with dignity. Encouraging him to “get back up” after being “knocked down” surely appeals to his impulses to “fight.” But it is only going to prolong the abuse he will suffer. Having him read carefully crafted messages from a teleprompter appears to be the campaign’s plan. But many American voters, regardless of their political loyalties, are already seeing right through that losing strategy.

Maya Angelou’s words have taken on new, raw resonance: “When someone shows you who they are, believe them.” At the CNN debate, Mr. Biden showed the entire world exactly who he is now. And as much as it hurts, all of us — not just those of us who have admired him for decades but those who are closest to him and love him the most — should accept what we saw. For the country’s sake and for his sake, please urge him to step aside.

Richard Young, Lexington, N.Y.

I have lost all respect for Jill Biden.

Her statement to Vogue that she won’t let 90 minutes wipe away the accomplishments of the past few years contains some truth. President Biden has accomplished much during his time in office and during his career as a whole. The debate does nothing to change the past.

What it did do was make clear that Mr. Biden is no longer the man he once was and won’t have the capacity needed to serve as president for four more years.

Ms. Biden should acknowledge this. She has choices other than to stand by her man. Once someone begins to decline, it is not something you can reverse. It’s not just a cold. She must understand that it is time for the president to step away while his legacy remains intact.

It’s time to take away the car keys. Every adult child of an aging parent knows this is one of the hardest conversations to have. It’s almost always met with resistance. Unfortunately, Ms. Biden must play the part of the child in this situation.

The president is not a toddler to pacify. He should not be protected nor surrounded by folks who are unwilling to tell him the truth. Ms. Biden needs to step up and have that tough conversation. I am sure she has the power to influence his decision. There is no shame in facing the truth. It just takes courage.

Robin Marquis, Alexandria

As the fallout from the first presidential debate between President Biden and former president Donald Trump continues, Jill Biden might want to take a lesson from Nancy Reagan. Her husband, Ronald Reagan, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease almost six years after he left office. Ms. Reagan, who prided herself on the role she played as dutiful wife, took it upon herself to care for and shield her husband, ensuring his final years were spent in dignity and privacy.

Like Ms. Reagan, Ms. Biden has always stood by her husband, often acting as a confidante and close adviser. However, there comes a time when love and loyalty must transcend political ambition. The time has come for Ms. Biden to protect her husband, not just as the president but as the man she loves.

Ms. Reagan’s actions serve as a poignant reminder of the importance of recognizing and addressing the mental health of our leaders. By acknowledging Mr. Reagan’s decline candidly, the couple preserved and added to his legacy and allowed him to live out his final years away from the public eye. Ms. Biden, too, can safeguard her husband’s dignity and well-being by encouraging him to step aside.

The implications of ignoring Mr. Biden’s mental state are profound. The rigorous demands of the presidency require sharp mental acuity and the ability to make swift, sound decisions. Any decline poses a risk not only to the individual but also to the nation. Ignoring what was so blatantly obvious during the debate and what has been reported since could lead to unpredictable and politically dire consequences.

Encouraging Mr. Biden to step aside is not an admission of defeat. But it would demonstrate a commitment to the nation’s best interests over individual ambition and ego.

Ms. Biden’s influence and support have been instrumental in her husband’s career. Now, she has the chance to ensure that his legacy is not tarnished by one of the few things a president can’t control: time. By guiding him toward a graceful exit from public life, she can emulate Ms. Reagan’s example of compassion and foresight.

Andrew Logan Lawrence, Savannah, Ga.

During a recent telephone interview, Jill Biden said her husband “will always do what’s best for the country.” The real question is whether the Bidens’ perceptions match reality and the perceptions of the American people.

There’s no doubt that preventing Donald Trump from reentering the White House is in the vital interests and well-being of our country. What is up for debate is whether Mr. Biden, or some other Democrat, has the best chance to prevent what’s certain to be a disastrous and calamitous second Trump presidency. If Mr. Biden is not in a position to defeat Mr. Trump, the best thing for the country would be for him and for Mrs. Biden to be honest about that.

Ken Derow, Swarthmore, Pa.

Dear Jill Biden,

That is why it is so urgent and compelling for you to persuade President Biden to immediately forgo his campaign and release his delegates.

Mr. Biden has accomplished so much for so many over his lifetime, especially during his presidency. He has overcome formidable obstacles, baseless criticisms and character assassinations. His record is simply remarkable.

However, it is now apparent that he cannot obtain a reelection victory, and the perception of his health left by the recent debate will not and cannot be changed: one cannot unsee what we all saw. If he stays in the race, his legacy will be irreparably tarnished and our future as a nation will be at risk. As Mr. Biden himself has said, “Our democracy is at peril.”

We have come to this unshakable conclusion after significant reflection but with great affection for you both.

Your true supporters,

Chris and Carole Kerns, Washington