U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris stand together on the podium after speaking at the Democratic National Committee’s 2023 Winter Meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., February 3, 2023.
Elisabeth Franz | Reuters
On a Tuesday in early July, 75 wealthy Democratic political donors gathered on a Zoom call to discuss the president’s path forward Joe Biden after his disastrous debate performance be opposed to Donald Trumpaccording to a person on the call.
Only one donor said they thought Biden should remain in the race, this person said. Everyone else has made it very clear. They think Biden needs to drop out of the race, if the party wants to defeat Trump in November. People who spoke to CNBC were granted anonymity and were free to discuss sensitive issues.
Since then, big-money donors who bankrolled Biden’s campaign, his allied political action committees or the party as a whole have launched lobbying campaigns targeting top House and Senate Democrats.
Their goal is to persuade lawmakers to disclose Call on Biden to end his re-election campaignAccording to six people familiar with the matter.
Many of these donors have made their position clear: If Biden refuses to withdraw, they will not donate money to help him get re-elected until polls show he is the clear favorite to defeat Trump.
Donors making such calls to Democrats on Capitol Hill include Hollywood executive Ari Emanuel, his brother Zeke Emanuel and Allen Jones of Intermediate Capital Group, two people familiar with the matter explained. Senior Managing Director, longtime Democratic donor).
this strive to start a fight Some Biden allies want to keep donors on the president’s team.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, her husband, former President Bill Clinton, and Biden campaign co-chairman Jeff Katzenberg, a media mogul, have all issued pleas to donors, according to people familiar with the matter. Stick with Biden.
Biden has repeatedly said he has no plans to drop out of the race, despite more than 20 members of Congress publicly calling on him to “pass the torch” and many more doing so privately.
“I think at this point almost all of the donors have either publicly or privately spoken to the campaign, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed deep concern.
“While Biden doesn’t really care what donors think, leadership does because of the impact of the vote,” Bundler added.
Pelosi, Schumer and Jeffries each Reportedly warns Biden And he said his chances of winning in November could be a drag on congressional candidates if he continues to run.
The Biden campaign did not respond to a request for comment. Likewise, representatives for Clinton, Bill Clinton and Zeke Emanuel did not respond to CNBC’s requests for comment. A press representative for Ali Emanuel declined to comment. Jones did not respond to an email seeking comment.
However, Biden’s fundraising failure doesn’t necessarily mean the party’s demise.
In a surprise move, events featuring Vice President Kamala Harris, Biden’s likely successor if he steps down, have begun to sell out.
An online seating chart for Harris’ concert event in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, on July 27 shows that all seats are nearly sold out. Tickets start at $100 and can go up to just over $12,000, according to the invitation. Folk legend James Taylor and cello star Yo-Yo Ma are the headliners.
