MILWAUKEE — House Democrats are warning the Democratic National Committee (DNC) not to move forward with its plan to formally nominate President Biden through a virtual call a month before the August convention.
Lawmakers say they have “serious concerns” about the plan as the party remains at odds over the president’s candidacy.
Members are circulating a letter to the DNC, which was obtained by The Hill, arguing that it is “a terrible idea” to hold an “unnecessary and unprecedented” roll call vote, arguing that it could “profoundly undermine Democratic morale and unity.” . …at the worst possible time.”
“There is no legal justification for this extraordinary and unprecedented action, which would effectively speed up the nomination process by nearly a month,” the letter said, adding that the justification for the virtual call is no longer “valid.”
Proponents of the letter, first reported by The New York Timescalled on the DNC to cancel plans for the virtual call and “refrain from any extraordinary procedures” that could be seen as restricting debate or forcing early nominations.
“Continuing with the ‘virtual call’ in the absence of a valid legal basis will rightly be perceived as a purely political maneuver, which we believe would be counterproductive and undermine the unity and cohesion of the party,” the letter said.
Members also noted that Biden has told members of Congress in recent days that if a Democrat wants to challenge his nomination, they can do so at the convention. And they noted that the party is “currently engaged in careful consideration and debate” about how essential it is for them to defeat former President Trump and gain control of Congress.
Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), who is signing the letter, told The Hill in a brief interview that a “substantial number” of lawmakers support the effort.
“They should do the right thing and kill this stupid idea instead of rushing the nomination by an entire month,” he said.
The letter marks a resurgence of unrest within the Democratic Party after public scrutiny of Biden at the top of the ticket took a brief pause following the assassination attempt at former President Trump’s rally on Saturday.
Before the shooting, about 20 Democrats came out in public to call on Biden to withdraw from the race, but since then, Biden has been hoping for a reset, hoping to divert attention from his own troubled re-election campaign.
The Biden campaign on Tuesday defended the virtual roll call voting plan, which was originally made to ensure Biden appeared on the ballot in all 50 states after Democrats were notified earlier this year that the timing of their convention did not meet Ohio’s deadline to certify the party’s presidential candidate before the Aug. 19 convention.
But on June 2, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine (R) signed legislation to extend the deadline from August 7 to August 31. And since then, Biden’s debate performance has caused concern among Democrats about whether he should remain at the top of the list. the ticket.
Huffman said members hope the DNC will relent on its plan for a virtual roll call vote before lawmakers send the letter, warning that moving forward with its plan will leave “a lot of people” frustrated.
“The hope is that this won’t even be necessary,” Huffman said.
“We would all prefer not to send it,” he added. “If they stand their ground and try to make this power play, they’re going to upset a lot of people.”
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
