Biden isolation grows, fundraisers on hold
The number of Democratic lawmakers calling on President Joe Biden to end his reelection bid have reached 34 and fundraisers for his campaign have been put on hold following the 81-year-old incumbent’s halting debate performance against Republican rival Donald Trump.
The lawmakers—four senators and 30 representatives—represent more than one in eight Democrats in Congress, where Biden’s party controls 213 seats in the House of Representatives and 51 in the Senate.
At least nine lawmakers joined the chorus for Biden’s withdrawal on Friday.
Meanwhile, several of Biden’s reelection campaign fundraisers are on hold, multiple Democratic sources involved in the events told Reuters on Friday, even as the Democratic Party planned to accelerate his nomination and he vowed to continue in the 2024 race.
Biden had planned to raise money in Austin, Denver and California next week, but these plans have been shelved, at least for now, the sources said. The president tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday but said Friday he would return to the campaign trail next week.
Biden’s campaign said his fundraisers would go ahead as planned. “Reuters’ sourcing is incorrect, and we look forward to a robust fundraising schedule,” campaign spokesperson Kevin Munoz said on Friday.
A source familiar with the situation said former late-night comic David Letterman would headline a fundraiser for Biden at the home of Hawaii Gov. Josh Green in about 10 days.
Checkbooks closed
A number of big donors are closing their checkbooks amid questions about whether Biden should remain at the top of Democratic Party ticket, the sources said, using their financial clout to tell Biden to drop out of the Nov. 5 race, potentially in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris.
The campaign hoped to raise some $50 million in big-dollar donations in July for the Biden Victory fund but was on track for less than half that figure as of Friday, according to two sources familiar with the fundraising efforts.
“There are a lot of donors who have said they won’t put another dime in this race. The question is if Biden stays in the race, will they come back?” said one major East Coast campaign financier.
Biden raised $28 million in one night in June at a Hollywood fundraiser that was hosted by the actor George Clooney, who later urged Biden to end his campaign.
The vice president on Friday assured major Democratic donors that the party would win the presidential election.
“We are going to win this election,” she said on a call arranged on short notice to calm donors, according to a person on the call.
Donors were called to join the 30-minute briefing “to discuss urgent, emerging needs,” according to a copy of the invitation seen by Reuters.
Harris attended the call “at the direct request of senior advisers to the president,” one of the people said, an account confirmed by another person familiar with the matter.
Nomination advancing
“This narrative that high-dollar fundraising has dried up is wrong,” a campaign official said, noting that the campaign has 10 fundraisers on the schedule for this month.
In the meantime, the official party process to nominate Biden is advancing.
The Democratic National Convention Rules Committee met on Friday to outline a virtual voting process to bring forward the official nomination of the 81-year-old before the party’s in-person convention starts Aug. 19 in Chicago.
For a party already divided over Biden, the early virtual vote is another point of controversy.
Critics argue it is a means of pushing Biden through early as the party’s official nominee.
