Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told President Joe Biden directly on Saturday that he is concerned about Democratic losses in November, according to one person close to both men.
Schumer visited the president in his home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. During the one-on-one meeting, he shared his grim view of the circumstances, said the person, who was granted anonymity to speak freely about the private conversation.
“The meeting discussed recent polling, the Democratic Party and where it’s headed,” the person said, adding that the talk “was predicated on the recent troubles facing the president.”
The meeting ended before the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump nearly 400 miles away at a Butler, Pennsylvania rally.
Schumer issued a brief statement after the meeting that simply said: “I sat with President Biden this afternoon in Delaware; we had a good meeting.”
ABC News first reported that Schumer had confronted Biden, telling the president it would be best if he dropped out of the race. POLITICO has not independently confirmed that account. Schumer’s spokesperson did not directly deny that report but called it “idle speculation” and added that: “Leader Schumer conveyed the views of his caucus directly to President Biden on Saturday.”
Biden’s campaign and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has declined to discuss his own private meeting with Biden last week, but two Democratic members said they believe he also delivered the message that the majority of the caucus has concerns he can’t beat Trump. Jeffries’ loyalists in the caucus have repeatedly refused to discuss their conversations with the Democratic leader. Many members said they haven’t heard from him at all since his meeting with Biden.
“The letter sent by Leader Hakeem Jeffries to his House Democratic colleagues speaks for itself. It was a private conversation that will remain private,” a Jeffries spokesperson said.
The news has since gotten worse for Biden.
On Wednesday he announced he tested positive for Covid-19 and was forced to cancel an appearance in Nevada.
Through TV interviews and other public remarks, he has failed to reclaim the support of skeptics in his fractured party since his halting debate performance last month. An AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll released Wednesday found nearly two-thirds of Democrats want him to withdraw from the race and allow his party to nominate a replacement candidate.
Sarah Ferris contributed to this report.
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