Members of the Mafia are reputed to be bound by an oath of Omertà. The criminals are expected to maintain silence and secrecy about the inner workings of the gangs and handle their own conflicts internally. A unified front against all outsiders is needed to keep the organizations operational.

The Democratic Party is another shady gang that relies on a code of silence among its members. Democratic officials usually operate in such lockstep that it is rare to hear one share an unguarded message. But one Democrat recently broke from the party line regarding President Joe Biden’s future.

Not only did Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota go on the record to cast doubt on Biden’s capacity for another presidential run, but he also revealed many other Democrats are doing the same thing in private.

According to a Monday article in The Atlantic, Phillips expressed a preference that the erratic Biden should not be the only option for Democrats in the 2024 election.

“This is not a knock on Joe Biden, just a wish for competition,” the congressman said. “In the business world, if the dominant brand in a category had favorability ratings like the current president does, you would see a number of established brands jump into that category.”

He said this belief is widespread among his Democrat colleagues.

“Believe me, there are literally hundreds in Congress who would say the same thing," Philips said. "But they simply won’t f***ing say a word.”

The painful truth is Biden’s advanced age is a huge problem for the Democrats. Biden turned 80 on Nov. 20. He is already the oldest American president. Biden would be 82 if he were sworn in in 2025. He would be 86 if he made it all the way through a second term.

In October, Harvard Health Publishing shared data from the National Center for Health Statistics that life expectancy for white Americans had dropped to 76.4 years. A decline in life span started in 2019. Biden is already well past that milestone.

It’s not only Biden’s advanced age that is problematic. Paired with the cognitive failings he consistently displays, there are serious questions about whether Biden is capable of acting as president.

The disturbing pattern includes inappropriate laughter about Americans suffering, disconcerting public lapses and stumbles through unconvincing explanations for his growing scandals.

Many wonder if someone else is running the White House from behind the scenes; former President Barak Obama has been suggested as a possibility.

It’s not just an inconvenience to have such a diminished chief executive. It’s a national security risk, and even a danger to world peace, as noted last month by one-time White House physician and current Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson.

“It’s TERRIFYING for our country that Biden is our commander-in-chief," the Republican wrote. "He doesn’t know where he’s at half the time, and every day he brings us closer to an all-out war with Russia & China. His cognitive decline is going to get people KILLED!!”

Biden isn’t up to being president now, and there is nothing to suggest he will improve. There’s no way his handlers should be entertaining a 2024 campaign.

Even Democratic voters see the concerns and do not want a Biden second term.

Before the State of the Union address in February, The Associated Press, in conjunction with NORC at the University of Chicago, released a poll that found only 37 percent of Democratic voters supported Biden running a second time.

If only Democratic politicians would listen to their own voters.

As Phillips fumed, the Democrats in Washington will internally acknowledge Biden should be gone, but when the time comes, they will all fall in line and not say a bleeping word.

This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.