It looks like former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi may be taking matters into her own hands since President Joe Biden doesn’t seem likely to withdraw from the election.
Politico’s Jonathan Martin wrote on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter, that Pelosi is “convinced Biden will lose.” She’s also been “working the phones” since the CNN debate in a behind-the-scenes bid to remove Biden from the ticket,” Martin wrote.
Last week, Pelosi was seen openly talking to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in the House Democratic cloakroom, Martin reported, citing a Pelosi colleague who saw the exchange.
And on Friday, Jeffries said in a letter to Democratic lawmakers that he had met Biden in a private meeting on Thursday.
“In my conversation with President Biden, I directly expressed the full breadth of insight, heartfelt perspectives, and conclusions about the path forward that the Caucus has shared in our recent time together,” Jeffries wrote.
Notably, Jeffries’ letter did not say whether the House Democratic Caucus wanted Biden to step aside or stay the course.
BREAKING: In a new letter to House Democrats, Leader Hakeem Jeffries says he met in person with President Biden last night and “expressed the full breadth of insight, heartfelt perspectives and conclusions about the path forward that the Caucus has shared in our recent time… pic.twitter.com/bvl5MYTnSO
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) July 12, 2024
Martin further reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that Pelosi has also been communicating with big-name Democrats. She’s also told a former elected official that the destruction of the Democratic Party shouldn’t be a part of Biden’s legacy, per Politico.
It’s worth noting that Pelosi failed to endorse Biden during an appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Wednesday.
“It’s up to the president to decide if he is going to run,” Pelosi said. “We’re all encouraging him to make that decision. Because time is running short.”
“I want him to do whatever he decides to do. And that’s the way it is. Whatever he decides, we go with,” Pelosi continued.
A Pelosi representative later issued a statement on the same day, reiterating that it was up to Biden to decide whether to stay on. Again, the statement did not fully endorse Biden’s candidacy.
“Speaker Pelosi fully supports whatever President Biden decides to do. We must turn our attention to why this race is so important: Donald Trump would be a disaster for our country and our democracy,” Ian Krager, a spokesperson for Pelosi, said in an email to The Washington Post.
To be sure, Pelosi may not be alone in her stance — as multiple Democratic lawmakers have lost faith in Biden’s ability to pull off a win this year.
The presumptive Democratic nominee has faced growing calls to step down after his disastrous performance at his June 27 presidential debate with former President Donald Trump.
At least 18 House Democrats and one Democratic senator have called on Biden to quit following his poor debate performance.
Biden, on the other hand, has remained steadfast in wanting to stay in the race.
“I’m old. But I’m only three years older than Trump, number one. And number two, my mental acuity’s been pretty damn good,” Biden said in an interview with NBC News’ Lester Holt on Monday.
“I’ve gotten more done than any president has in a long, long time in three-and-a-half years. So I’m willing to be judged on that,” he continued.
Representatives for Pelosi and Biden didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.
