Democratic major donors have discussed staging an intervention to persuade President Joe Biden to step down as the party's nominee following his lackluster performance in Thursday night's debate, The New York Times reported Saturday.
Many have criticized Biden for his poor performance in the first presidential debate with former President Donald Trump, in which the president appeared frozen at times, was often difficult to understand, and made multiple gaffes. Following that dismal performance, some major Democratic donors said they planned to intervene and convince the president to drop out of the race, while others hoped that the widespread negative reaction would lead Biden to make the decision to drop out on his own. according to To the NYT. (Related article: One statistic explains the massive populist wave sweeping America)
“He should be given the opportunity to reflect and say, 'I still think I can do this. I still think I'm the best choice,'” Steven Cauthen, a Democratic donor and friend of the president, told The New York Times of what he said to other donors urging him to step in. “It's his decision. And I'll support him until he makes that decision.”
According to The New York Times, Silicon Valley megadonor group members Ron Conway and Laurene Powell Jobs were running around talking to other donors about the “potential catastrophe” after the debate, and the solution they came up with was to contact the First Lady, Jill Biden, and find a way to convince the president to drop out of the race.
Democrats' Favorite Fundraising Platform Allows Donations to Nonprofits Linked to Palestinian Terrorist Organizations https://t.co/JR2I7E8zi9
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One Silicon Valley donor canceled plans to host a fundraiser featuring Biden later this summer, according to The New York Times.Despite concerns that it would lose momentum in fundraising, the Biden campaign claimed it had raised $14 million from online sources after the debate by Friday morning.
According to The New York Times, the Biden campaign has struggled to raise money at the same pace as the Trump campaign in recent months, despite starting with a $100 million lead: The Biden campaign and the Democratic National Committee had raised $212 million as of early June, compared with $235 million for the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee.
According to The New York Times, after the debate, donors critical of the president talked about who could force him out of office, including former President Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer. Donors also speculated about who could be candidates to replace him, including Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and California Governor Gavin Newsom.
Despite being the leading candidate to succeed Biden, Newsom has repeatedly voiced his support for the president and vowed not to run for office in 2024.
Biden's mental acuity has long been questioned by opponents, as he is the oldest president in U.S. history, well into his 80s during his second term. Several prominent Democrats who had previously defended Biden's intellectual prowess were conspicuously silent after the debate after watching the president's performance.
Special Counsel Robert Hur's investigation into Biden's handling of classified documents concluded that the president should not be indicted because he appeared to be a “caring, well-meaning elderly man with a frail memory.”
The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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