Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol during the presidential debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, Friday, June 28, 2024.
Tom Williams | Cq-roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images
Former Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday refused to explicitly endorse President Joe Biden as the party’s presidential nominee and encouraged her colleagues in Congress to stop making public statements either for or against Biden.
“Let’s wait. Whatever you’re thinking, tell someone privately, but you don’t have to put it on the table until we see how this week goes.” Pelosi he said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
The comments were notable because Biden has repeatedly insisted he will not drop out of the race against former President Donald Trump and said his decision is final.
Pelosi’s carefully worded comments suggest she believes Biden is still deciding whether or not to stay on top.
“It’s up to the president to decide whether to run,” Pelosi said. “We all encourage him to make this decision because time is short.”
Pelosi has long been one of Biden’s closest allies in Congress, so her refusal to endorse Biden as a candidate — as many Democrats already have — created ripples on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.
Pelosi’s remarks came two weeks after Biden’s wall-to-wall effort to prove to Democrats and voters that his halting, lackluster performance in the June 27 debate was just “an episode,” as Pelosi put it last year. week, and not proof of “a treaty”. .” So far, Biden’s public outings have done little to assuage Democrats’ concerns about his health.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Biden said this week in an interview, also on “Morning Joe.” “I absolutely believe that I am the best candidate to beat Donald Trump in 2024.”
As a result, Biden’s NATO summits in Washington this week come with added pressure to prove to Democrats that he is capable enough to defeat Trump in November and serve a second, four-year term.
The pressure for Biden to deliver redeeming public performances this week comes as calls for him to quit grow louder.
On Tuesday Sen. Michael BennettD-Colo., became the first Democratic senator to publicly announce that he doesn’t believe the president can beat Trump, though he stopped short of formally asking him to drop out of the race.
On the other side of the Capitol, the pressure has been expressed more openly. Also Tuesday, House Rep. Mikie Sherrill, DN.J., became the latest in a growing list of House Democrats to formally urge the president to drop out of the race.
In private meetings and phone calls, even more Democratic lawmakers, donors and strategists have expressed concerns about Biden’s ability to mount a grueling campaign and then, if he wins in November, spend another four years in the Oval Office.
In response to Pelosi’s comments, the Biden campaign pointed to a letter the president sent to congressional Democrats on Monday, reiterating his commitment to staying in the race and urging lawmakers to rally behind him. The campaign also presented a list of Democratic lawmakers who have made public statements expressing their support for Biden.
— CNBC’s Josephine Rozzelle contributed to this report.
