HARRISBURG, Pa. (Associated Press) — President Joe Biden He urged his supporters to unite during a series of stops in Pennsylvania on Sunday, but some leading Democrats privately suggested his election loss meant it was time to give up on his reelection bid. The doubts grow deeper As to whether he is fit for another term.
“I know I look like I’m 40,” the 81-year-old Biden joked, “but I’ve been doing this a long time.” Speaking at a rousing service in front of sun-soaked stained-glass windows at Philadelphia’s Mount Airy Church of God in Christ, the 81-year-old Biden said he was “very grateful” for the opportunity to speak at the event.
“I honestly have never been more optimistic about the future of America if we come together,” he said.
There, and later at a rally with union members in Harrisburg, Biden delivered short speeches that touched on familiar themes. But he also left plenty of room for key supporters to debate his support. In that sense, the Pennsylvania contest seemed designed more to showcase Biden’s support from the political establishment than to signal that he intends to serve another four years in office.
But his party remains deeply divided.
As Congress prepares to reconvene this week, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries convened a meeting of his committee leaders on Sunday afternoon to consider their views. Several Democratic committee leaders, including Reps. Jerry Nadler of New York, Jim Himes of Connecticut and Mark Takano of California, have privately said Biden should step aside, according to two people familiar with the meeting who spoke on condition of anonymity.
But other Democratic leaders, including members of the influential Congressional Black Caucus, were just as adamant that Biden remain the party’s choice.The conversations were wide-ranging, and committee leaders shared a range of views on the situation but no consensus on what should be done, the people said.
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Biden made private calls to lawmakers throughout the weekend and also took part in conference calls with campaign surrogates in which he reiterated that he has no plans to withdraw from the race. Instead, the president promised to focus on the campaign and increase his political travels going forward, according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private conversations.
One of the Democrats the president spoke to, Sen. Alex Padilla of California, said he and other senators were urging the Biden team to “bring Joe out, be Joe.”
“I absolutely believe we can turn this around,” Padilla told The Associated Press.
Meanwhile, a person familiar with Sen. Mark Warner’s thinking said a previously discussed meeting on Monday to discuss Biden’s future will not take place, and that discussion will take place at a regular caucus lunch with all Democratic senators on Tuesday. The person said that since it became public that the Virginia Democrat had been lobbying senators about Biden, a private meeting is no longer possible and that various discussions are continuing among senators.
Five other Democrats have already publicly He called on Biden to abandon his reelection campaign. in front of November. The in-person meetings this week mean more opportunities for lawmakers to debate whether Biden can survive the remaining four months of the campaign and what his real chances are of beating the presumptive Republican nominee, Donald, let alone four years in the White House. Trump.
The Biden campaign has been calling and texting lawmakers to try to thwart further defections, while also increasing calls for prominent Biden supporters to speak out on Biden’s behalf.
Nevertheless, calls for withdrawal came from various quarters.
Alan Clendenin, a Tampa city councilman and member of the Democratic National Committee, called on Biden on Sunday to “step back and allow Vice President Kamala Harris to advance his agenda as the Democratic nominee.” Director Rob Reiner, who has helped organize Biden’s glitzy Hollywood fundraisers in the past, posted on X, “It’s time for Joe Biden to step aside.”
The Democratic Convention is early. It is approaching And Biden on Friday Interview with ABC It has yet to convince skeptics.
Barry Goodman, a Michigan lawyer and Democratic fundraiser, said he supports Biden but would back Harris if Biden drops out. This is notable because Goodman also served as finance co-chair for both statewide campaigns for Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who is also considered a front-runner.
“We don’t have much time,” Goodman said. “I don’t think the president is going to run away, but if anyone does, I think it’s Kamala.”
There was no such suggestion in Mount Airy, where the Rev. Lewis Felton likened the president to the Biblical story of Joseph and his “multi-colored cloak,” in which Joseph was sold into slavery in Egypt by jealous brothers but eventually rose to a high position in Pharaoh’s kingdom and was begged for help by his brothers, who at first did not recognize him.
“Please don’t ever underestimate Joseph,” Felton pleaded. Referring to Democrats calling on Biden to step down, he added, “That’s what’s happening right now, Mr. President. People are jealous of you. Jealous of your tenacity. Jealous of your favor. Jealous of God’s hand in your life.”
Felton also led the prayer, saying, “Our president is discouraged. But today, renew his mind, renew his spirit, renew his body by your Holy Spirit.”
After the service, Biden visited his campaign office in Philadelphia, where he received a strong endorsement from Sen. John Fetterman, the Pennsylvania Democrat who won a tough 2022 race while recovering from a stroke.
“Only one person has ever beat Trump,” Fetterman said, “and he’s going to do it twice and beat Trump for good.”
Later, as the president disembarked from Air Force One in Harrisburg, he was asked if Democrats supported him and replied with a resounding “yes.”
“Our democracy is at stake, and there’s one person who understands that: Joe Biden,” said Rep. Madeleine Dean, a Pennsylvania Democrat who was at the union event.
Isabel Afonso, who saw Biden speak in Harrisburg, said her reaction to his performance in the presidential debate worried her but believes Biden should not withdraw from the race and can still win. “I know Biden is old, but if something were to happen, I’m sure someone decent would take his place,” Afonso, 63, said.
At the event, 73-year-old James Johnson called Biden a “warrior” even though he said he knows what it’s like to forget things as you get older. Replacing the president as the top Democratic candidate would only lead to confusion, Johnson said.
“I’m talking about lifelong Democrats and people who have been in the Democratic Party for a long time,” Johnson said, “who may decide to leave the party because of this.”
Still, some people aren’t entirely convinced.
Connecticut Democratic Senator Chris Murphy told CNN that Biden “needs to answer the questions that voters have,” adding: “I think if he answers them this week he’ll be in a very good position.”
Biden has refused to submit to an independent cognitive test, arguing that the day-to-day rigors of the presidency are evidence enough of his mental capacity, but Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., told NBC on Sunday that he would be “open to both the president and Donald Trump taking a cognitive test.”
Schiff also criticized Biden for suggesting in an ABC interview that he would be open to losing to Trump “as long as he gives it his all,” as some Democrats have done.
“This isn’t just a question of whether he did his best in college, it’s a question of whether he made the right decision to run or to pass the baton,” Schiff said.
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Weisert and Mascaro reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Zeke Miller and Kevin Freking in Washington, Michelle Price in New York, Meg Kinnard in Chapin, South Carolina, and Bill Barrow in New Orleans contributed to this report.
