Press Release
Monday, July 8, 2024
Jim Carpenter, co-chair EWWG, 414–491–3338 (cell), jcmilwgr@yahoo.com
Mike Caggiano, co-chair EWWG, mikaggiano@aol.com
Marcy Winograd, 2020 Bernie delegate, 424–443–9338 winogradteach@gmail.com
The End Wars Team of Progressive Democrats of America Calls on President Biden to Step Aside for a Candidate Who Can Beat Trump & End US-Backed Genocide & War.
The End Wars Working Group (EWWG), an autonomous committee of Progressive Democrats of America (PDA), calls for President Joe Biden to step aside and for Democrats to nominate a candidate committed to global cooperation and social justice.
As a working group of a national organization, we want a candidate who will stop arming Israel’s genocide in Gaza, support a ceasefire and diplomatic resolution to end the war in Ukraine, work with China to thwart the climate crisis and lift the decades-long embargo on our neighbor Cuba. In short, the PDA End Wars Working Group wants our national treasure invested in meeting people’s urgent needs — housing, healthcare, education, climate justice — not endless violence and militarism that risks regional wars, ecological devastation and nuclear annihilation.
On the home front, we reject Republican attempts to further militarize the border with billions of dollars in weaponry to ICE to jail asylum seekers, separate families and criminalize immigrants. We want a presidential nominee who understands the root causes of migration are conflict, climate chaos and extreme poverty and will work to address these issues. Our presidential nominee must support a just and humane immigration policy that provides a path to citizenship for the millions of undocumented workers toiling in the United States, as well as opportunities for immigrants fleeing persecution to seek asylum.
Just as we do not support wars abroad, we do not support a war closer to home on the most vulnerable.
President Biden is not the candidate to stop Donald Trump and the slide toward fascism and demagoguery.
President Biden is not the candidate to bring peace and stability to the world.
The End Wars Working Group sees the replacement of Biden as an opportunity to elect a president with a moral compass in foreign policy and respect for international law. Most importantly, the committee wants a president who will do what is necessary to achieve an immediate and lasting ceasefire in Israel’s heart-breaking war on Gaza and in the escalating proxy war in Ukraine that pits the two most nuclear-armed nations — the US and Russia — against each other in an existential threat to human survival.
The path to global justice is not violence; it is diplomacy, negotiation, compromise and a recognition of our shared humanity.
The path to justice in the United States requires the preservation of democracy, support for the common good, and a rejection of authoritarianism.
Achieving these goals requires Biden to step aside for a candidate up to the task of beating Trump and promoting global peace and domestic tranquility.
Individuals can show their support for these principles by visiting www.rootsaction.org and learning more about the “Step Aside Joe” campaign.
Supporters and Quotes
Jim Carpenter, co-chair, PDA End Wars Working Group, WI voter: “A candidate who proposes we stop arming Israel’s genocide would regain swing state voters, like me, who Biden had lost because of this issue.”
Mike Caggiano, co-chair, PDA End Wars Working Group: “The stakes are too high, both domestically and globally, to continue to back Biden in a race against authoritarianism and demagoguery. Now is the time for a new nominee to step forward and champion diplomacy on the world stage.”
Marcy Winograd, PDA End Wars Working Group, past co-chair and Bernie delegate to the 2020 DNC nominating convention: “President Biden is not up to the task of governing in an increasingly volatile world that demands leadership in the diplomatic arena. We don’t need a younger more energetic Democratic nominee who will double-down on Biden’s foreign policy failures — his support for Israel’s genocide and willingness to sacrifice Ukraine in a proxy war with Russia. We need a new leader who will choose peace over war and diplomacy over escalation.”
Nadia Ahmad, Elected DNC Committee Member, Florida. “An open convention is mission-critical for our democratic process as it would allow for adaptive decision-making and ensure that we nominate the best possible candidate.”
Randy Shannon, Secretary of the Board of Directors of PDA
Dan O’Neal, PDA National Field Coordinator, Arizona State Coordinator. “It is becoming clear that President Biden does not have the ability in the coming months to lead us in the imperative task of defeating Donald Trump. The country needs a leader who can focus on ending the genocide in Gaza, negotiating peace in Ukraine, and promoting a humanitarian border policy that will counter the xenophobic message of the MAGA right. Biden, for the common good, needs to step down.”
