Democratic elites have effectively removed President Joe Biden as their presidential nominee just over 100 days before the election, leading to criticism from Republican vice-presidential nominee Sen. J.D. Vance.

Vance has argued that the Democrats'' move is anti-democratic and deprives voters of their duly elected choice for the upcoming presidential election, as Breitbart reports.

The removal of Biden has sparked significant controversy, particularly among Republicans.

Vance made his comments during an interview with Breitbart News on Monday before his hometown rally in Middletown, Ohio.

Controversy Surrounds Biden's Ouster

Vance was announced as GOP presidential nominee former President Donald Trump’s running mate at the Republican National Convention on July 15. The news of Biden's removal came when he announced on Sunday afternoon that he was dropping out of the presidential race. This decision followed weeks of pressure from members of his own party due to his poor debate performance against Trump in late June.

Biden had effectively secured the Democrat nomination earlier in 2024. More than 14 million Democrats had voted for Biden, making his sudden exit a significant and controversial development in the political landscape.

Vance Criticizes Democratic Process

Vance stated that Vice President Kamala Harris and others should have run against Biden if they wanted the nomination. He described the process as elitist and anti-democratic. “Whatever we think about Joe Biden -- and I certainly don’t like him or like his policies -- they effectively removed the president because he became a political liability, and they gave voters no choice in the outcome,” Vance told Breitbart News.

He continued, “It’s actually quite dark if you think about it: A bunch of billionaires and Democratic politicians getting together in a room, deciding to deprive voters of the choice of who would be the nominee of the Democratic Party. It’s really anti-democratic, and it’s hysterical that after years of saying Republicans are the anti-democracy party, we actually ran a primary. President Trump won the trust and the confidence of Republican voters and the right to represent them on the national stage."

"Whoever the Democrats ultimately nominate, there is no democratic legitimacy because voters were not consulted. They were never given the opportunity to participate in this process, and I think it’s extraordinarily insulting to them and to everybody to think we could have somebody who has an approximately 50-50 chance of becoming president of the United States who voters have never weighed in on," he added.

Biden's Absence Raises Questions

Despite stepping down as a candidate, Biden is still serving as president. However, he has no public events scheduled for the upcoming week, which has raised questions and concerns. Vance described the situation as "creepy" due to Biden's absence from public life.

“It drives home how creepy it is that Biden hasn’t appeared, and he hasn’t spoken to the country,” Vance said. “He hasn’t shown any sign of life other than to announce that he’s not running for president, and, yeah, I think if you have a guy announce he cannot run for president, you should be asking questions about whether he can serve as president," he said.

"Look, I don’t know what else you can say about it other than it’s extremely creepy; it’s the Democrat elites trying to control the country without giving voters a chance to decide, and I’m just insulted by that. I’m not a Democratic primary voter, obviously, but I think that if you actually respect voters and you respect the process we have, they should get to make these decisions — not George Soros, George Clooney, and Barack Obama sitting in a smoke-filled room," he added.

Elitist Critique of the Process

Vance reiterated his point about the elitist nature of the decision.

“It’s definitionally anti-democracy. If they wanted to run somebody else for president, they should have done what everybody else has to do: Advance a candidate, fundraise for that candidate, get the message out there, try to persuade voters to select that candidate. That is how our process actually works,” Vance told Breitbart News.

He added, “What they did instead is they got Barack Obama, George Clooney, and George Soros in a room and decided to toss Biden aside because he was a political liability and try to install somebody else. It’s an insanely elitist and anti-democratic process. I don’t think we’ve ever seen anything like this in the history of our Republic where they have identified a political weakness on the president then threw him aside without giving voters the opportunity to weigh in.”

Vance's remarks underscore the tension and controversy surrounding Biden's removal and the broader implications for democratic processes and voter representation.

The decision to remove Biden has led to significant debate and criticism, particularly from those who view the move as undermining the democratic principles that the electoral process is supposed to uphold.

Conclusion

In summary, the removal of President Joe Biden as the Democratic presidential nominee has sparked intense criticism from Republican vice-presidential nominee, Sen. J.D. Vance, who described the move as anti-democratic and elitist.

Vance argues that the decision to oust Biden, made by Democratic elites, deprives voters of their choice and undermines the democratic process. With Biden's absence from public life raising further questions, the controversy continues to unfold as the election approaches.