WASHINGTON — Key Democrats in the House and Senate are planning meetings next week in which they are expected to discuss President Joe Biden’s path forward.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., will convene a virtual meeting with Democratic members of the committee on Sunday, three sources told NBC News. The meeting is expected to focus on President Biden, one of the sources said, as he faces calls to withdraw from the party’s nomination.
Meanwhile, Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., is organizing a group of Democratic senators to meet next week to discuss how to address concerns about Biden’s electability and the potential for slower House and Senate races, four sources familiar with the matter told NBC News Friday.
Although two House Democrats have publicly called on Biden to withdraw from the 2024 race after a devastating performance in last week’s debate, and others have privately echoed those calls, senators have so far held their fire on Biden’s future.
Warner declined to comment on the meeting, and Jeffries did not respond to a request for comment.
The meeting of House committee leaders, scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday, is not part of a regular gathering of senior members. It comes a day before House lawmakers are scheduled to return to Washington after the July 4 recess.
Last weekend, on MSNBC, Jeffries called Biden’s debate performance “disappointing” and a “setback,” but said she was setting up a “comeback” for the president. But Jeffries has been fairly tight-lipped about Biden in recent days, and very little has leaked from his conference call with top House Democratic leaders ahead of the July 4 holiday.
Members of Congress have been out of Washington on vacation since before Biden’s debate with former President Donald Trump, and both chambers will resume Monday night.
Biden and the White House have insisted he will stay in the race, with the president telling supporters at a rally in Wisconsin on Friday that he will run and beat Trump in November.
Reached for comment on the meeting hosted by Warner, a Biden campaign aide referred to the president’s rally in Wisconsin, specifically his remarks about staying in the race.
