Top Democrat Adam Schiff demands Biden drop out of the race

Congressman Adam Schiff is calling on President Biden to exit the presidential race, making him the latest top ranking Democrat to do so amid concerns over whether the president can win against Donald Trump. 

'While the choice to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden's alone, I believe it is time for him to pass the torch,' Schiff said in a statement on Wednesday. 

 'And in doing so, secure his legacy of leadership by allowing us to defeat Donald Trump in the upcoming election,' he continued.

Schiff, a senior Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee and close ally of Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, is running for the Senate to represent California. 

He also led the first impeachment inquiry into Trump.

'Joe Biden has been one of the most consequential presidents in our nation's history, and his lifetime of service as a Senator, a Vice President, and now as President has made our country better,' his statement provided by his campaign read.

'But our nation is at a crossroads. A second Trump presidency will undermine the very foundation of our democracy, and I have serious concerns about whether the President can defeat Donald Trump in November," he continued. 

'But make no mistake, whoever our party ends up nominating, or if the nomination remains with the president, I will do everything I can to help them succeed. There is only one singular goal: defeating Donald Trump. The stakes are just too high,' he added.

Schiff's call for Biden to step aside was first reported by the Los Angeles Times. 

His statement comes as a brutal new AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll found 65 percent of Democrats want Biden to withdraw from the race and let the party nominate a different candidate. 

It also found only 3 in 10 Democrats are confident in his mental capacity to serve as president.

The results undercut Biden's claim that 'average Democrats' want him to remain in the race and only 'the elite' want him out. 

Biden has spent the past two weeks pushing back on the rising tide against him. But the poll, conducted since his disastrous debate with Trump, shows he has not been able to convince Democrats.