President Joe Biden faced a new round of defections Friday from Democratic lawmakers publicly calling on him to leave the presidential race, even as his campaign sought to project a message that he isn’t going anywhere.
One day after the Republican National Convention, new public calls for Biden to drop out from nearly a dozen lawmakers – including Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico and California Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a close ally to former Speaker Nancy Pelosi – grew the list of congressional Democrats to more than 30.
Two House Democrats close to Pelosi, speaking on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity and rawness in the party right now, attributed Friday’s new statements – especially Lofgren’s letter to Biden – to the former speaker and her belief that it is critical for the president and his allies to understand the effort to push him aside is not going away after the Republican convention, despite the campaign’s efforts to quash it.
The president is described by a source with direct knowledge as “seething” at Pelosi. This source said the sentiment only grew Friday when Lofgren, Pelosi’s longtime close lieutenant, released her letter urging Biden to step aside. CNN has reached out to Pelosi’s camp and the Biden campaign for comment on this reporting.
It is a remarkable break between two powerful party elders and longtime allies in enacting key elements of the Biden agenda.
Aides to Vice President Kamala Harris inside and outside the campaign have also expressed unhappiness with Pelosi and her talk of a quick process to find a new candidate should Biden step aside.
To them, “process” means trying to bypass the vice president in the event the president stepped aside. Harris, who has staunchly defended Biden publicly and tried to show unity, spoke with donors on a call Friday afternoon, which she was asked to do by the West Wing, according to campaign officials.
Biden’s campaign hoped to force party unity Friday, releasing a statement from Biden saying he was looking forward to hitting the campaign trail next week after being sidelined with Covid-19.
And Biden campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon went on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” Friday morning to say Biden was “absolutely” in the race.
