(NewsNation) — Several high-ranking House Democrats told Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries they’d prefer to see President Joe Biden withdraw from the presidential race, sources familiar with the Sunday call told NewsNation.
While most said they would support Vice President Kamala Harris to take over the race, others didn’t name anyone specific to head the Democratic ticket.
In its reporting on the private Zoom call, NewsNation partner The Hill names four lawmakers who “called for Biden to step down: Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., Mark Takano, D-Calif., and Joe Morelle, D-N.Y.
“They were part of the general sentiment that we need to do something else,” one of the sources told The Hill.
NewsNation has also learned that Smith, the top-ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, plans to issue a statement tomorrow sharing his thoughts about Biden’s future.
At least five other House Democrats have publicly called on the president to leave the race: Reps. Lloyd Doggett (Texas), Mike Quigley (Ill.), Raúl Grijalva (Ariz.), Seth Moulton (Mass.) and Angie Craig (Minn.).
One senior House Democrat also told NewsNation that at least four female House Democrats are “strongly considering” calling on Biden to step aside. The member said that could happen after a House Democratic meeting scheduled for Tuesday.
Biden spent Sunday campaigning in the vital battleground state of Pennsylvania, attending a church service in Philadelphia and a rally in Harrisburg.
“People need to be reminded of what he is, what he has done in the past and what he’s capable of,” said one woman at the church event.
“Regardless of his age, the man is about justice, about liberty, about the law … and he has experience. Experience is the best teacher in the world,” another churchgoer added.
Biden has a busy schedule ahead, including the NATO summit in Washington starting Tuesday. He’ll participate in a joint news conference – his first encounter with a group of reporters since the debate with former President Donald Trump that prompted the calls for Biden to step down.
Biden will be in Austin, Texas on Monday, July 15 for a speech at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library to mark the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. July 15 is also the first day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
Biden caps the week with speeches in Las Vegas at the NAACP National Convention and the UnidosUS conference, one of the largest gatherings of Latinos in the U.S.
While he listened to colleagues call on Biden to quit the race, Jeffries has said he wants the president to remain the Democratic candidate. Two other top House members, James Clyburn of South Carolina and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have expressed confidence in Biden.
But Pelosi told MSNBC last week that it is “legitimate” to ask both Biden and Trump “is this an episode, or is this a condition?”
Also, Democratic strategist Dmitri Mehlhorn, a close associate of LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, said he’s backing Biden. “Joe Biden is our nominee. He is our best chance of beating Trump. The public campaign to oust him does no good. And it needs to end as quickly as possible,” Mehlhorn told NewsNation.
