Schumer Denies Claims That He Urged Biden to Step Down

According to multiple well-connected Democratic sources, support for President Joe Biden among elected party leaders is waning. A long-time public defender of Biden remarked on Wednesday, "Biden is going to see the whole house of cards come down soon."

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer met with Biden in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on Saturday. Following their meeting, Schumer's office released a brief statement: "I sat with President Biden this afternoon in Delaware; we had a good meeting."

The meeting garnered little attention, overshadowed by the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania later that day.

A knowledgeable source close to both Schumer and Biden revealed that Schumer had a candid discussion with Biden, arguing that it would be best for Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race.

When asked for details, Schumer's spokesperson declined to elaborate, stating only that "Leader Schumer conveyed the views of his caucus." Later, the spokesperson added, "Unless ABC's source is Chuck Schumer or President Joe Biden, the reporting is idle speculation. Leader Schumer conveyed the views of his caucus directly to President Biden on Saturday."

Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi reportedly spoke with Biden about a week ago, expressing her and other Democratic members' concerns about his continued candidacy, according to a source confirmed by ABC News.

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries has also directly conveyed similar concerns to Biden, suggesting he should drop out of the race, as confirmed by a source familiar with the matter.

A spokesperson for Jeffries told ABC News, “Leader Hakeem Jeffries privately met with President Joe Biden a week ago. On behalf of the House Democratic caucus, he directly expressed the full breadth of insight, perspective, and conclusions reached about the path forward - after extensive colleague-to-colleague discussions. Any further characterization of the private, one-on-one meeting between President Biden and Leader Jeffries is speculative and uninformed. The letter sent by Leader Jeffries to his House Democratic colleagues speaks for itself.”

In a letter dated July 12, Jeffries informed House Democrats, "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."

The letter did not specify whether Jeffries urged Biden to drop out or remain in the race.

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates stated, "The President told both leaders he is the nominee of the party, he plans to win, and looks forward to working with both of them to pass his 100 days agenda to help working families."

Despite these concerns, Biden continues to have strong support from influential figures in the Democratic Party, including the Congressional Black Caucus and progressive leaders such as Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.