Former President of the Chamber Nancy Pelosi told the president Joe Biden Last week, she and other Democratic lawmakers feared he was dragging the party down, in an unusually candid confrontation that came amid mounting pressure on Biden to end his re-election campaign.
Pelosi also warned Biden that some Democratic lawmakers would start complaining more loudly about his political weaknesses, according to two people close to Pelosi. She urged the president to make a decision about resigning soon.
A Pelosi ally said it was possible to publicly pressure Biden to give up his place at the top of the Democratic ticket.
“The speaker of the House does not want to ask him to resign, but she will do everything in her power to ensure that happens,” this person said, referring to the fact that Biden has dropped out of the race.
A second Pelosi ally put her calculation in blunt terms.
“There’s nothing subtle about Nancy,” this person said. “It starts with the question, ‘What does it take to win?’ So it works the other way around.”
The exchange between Biden and Pelosi highlights a new and increasingly public phase in the effort to remove Biden from the Democratic ticket. Senior Democrats had hoped to address this issue privately — Pelosi herself certainly advised members to try to do so, at least for a while.
So far, Biden and his inner circle have refused to concede. Now, they face leaks left and right that keep the president on the defensive.
News of Pelosi’s conversation with Biden was first reported by CNN. It came hours after ABC News reported that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told Biden, in two separate conversations, that it would be better for the country if he ended the campaign.
POLITICO reported Wednesday night that Schumer and Jeffries conveyed to Biden that they were deeply concerned about his effect on Democrats’ ability to gain control of Congress.
Pelosi’s office said in a statement that she has not spoken to Biden since returning to California on Friday — and questioned the report about her conversation with the president. “These sources are not good sources,” said her spokesperson.
White House spokesman Andrew Bates simply said: “Biden is the party’s nominee… plans to win and looks forward to working with Congressional Democrats to pass his 100-day agenda to help working families.”
