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Join Telegram ChannelSenate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., privately told members of his conference that he has serious doubts about President Biden's ability to win reelection, according to a report.
Schumer reportedly agrees with what many Democrats have said publicly — that Biden, 81, appears too old and too slow to lead the party to victory against former President Trump — but he does not believe the president's reelection campaign is “unsalvageable,” The Hill reported, citing three unnamed Senate sources.
“Schumer told his colleagues that he did not want to say anything publicly to question Biden’s viability as a candidate or to pressure him to abandon his campaign because he feared doing so would undermine the president and hurt Democrats in the fall election,” the report said.
A spokesperson for Schumer did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
SCHUMER REAFFIRMS SUPPORT FOR BIDEN AFTER REPORT THAT HE IS OPEN TO AVOIDANCE OF PRESIDENT AS 2024 CANDIDATE
Schumer speaks with Alex Nguyen, his communications director, during the Senate Democrats' news conference following their lunch at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, July 9, 2024. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The majority leader has backed Biden in his public statements since the president’s widely criticized debate performance last month. But at least 17 Democratic lawmakers, numerous editorialists and several pundits have urged Biden to abandon his 2024 campaign amid growing concerns about the president’s mental acuity and ability to handle the responsibilities of campaigning and the presidency.
On Wednesday, Axios reported that Schumer had signaled to Democratic donors that he was open to replacing Biden as the 2024 leader of the ticket. The report said Schumer had listened to donors' ideas and suggestions that the best way for the party to move forward and debate former President Trump is to impeach Biden.
In a statement to Fox News on Wednesday following the Axios report, Schumer reaffirmed his commitment to Biden.
“As I have made clear repeatedly in public and private, I support President Biden and remain committed to ensuring Donald Trump is defeated in November,” he said.
BLUMENTHAL SAYS SOME CONCERNS 'DEEPER' AFTER MEETING WITH BIDEN ADVISORS
Schumer gestures while speaking during a signing ceremony with President Joe Biden, left, and former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2022. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Earlier this week, Schumer chaired a Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) meeting that included Democratic senators, Biden senior advisers Mike Donilon and Steve Ricchetti, and campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon. Biden’s aides fielded questions and concerns from nervous lawmakers who fear Biden could lose the election and drag other Democrats into key swing states.
“I need to see more analysis and data that shows a path to victory,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, told reporters after the meeting, expressing that his “concerns” about Biden remain.
“Joe Biden must continue to respond effectively and aggressively to the concerns of the American people,” he said.
Sen. Peter Welch, a Vermont Democrat who on Wednesday became the first Democratic senator to call on Biden to drop out of the race, also attended the DSCC meeting. “It was an opportunity for the campaign to come in and tell us where they stand and for senators to ask questions.” [and] “to make comments,” he later said.
SCHUMER REMAINS SILENT AS CONCERNS OVER BIDEN'S FITNESS GROW IN SENATE
Schumer gestures to Biden after delivering remarks during an event marking the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in the East Room of the White House on June 18, 2024, in Washington, DC. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Asked by reporters what he thought of Biden's candidacy after hearing from his advisers, he said, “That's where I'm at, you know.” He said in a Washington Post op-ed Wednesday that he didn't think Biden was the best Democratic candidate to beat Trump.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., called on the Biden campaign to be “stronger and clearer, not only in defending its own record, but in creating an agenda for the future, particularly for the needs of the working class of this country.”
Republican Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Schumer’s counterpart in the House of Representatives, has also kept his personal views on Biden to himself. With the party in turmoil over what to do with the aging president, Jeffries has spent the past two weeks listening to a wide range of voices at the House Democratic conference in an effort to keep the party united.
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On Friday, Jeffries revealed in a letter to Democratic members that he met privately with Biden Thursday night and “expressed the full breadth of ideas, candid perspectives, and conclusions about the path forward that the Caucus has shared during our recent collaboration.”
The letter does not indicate whether Jefferies encouraged the president to change his mind about the 2024 campaign.
Although a handful of Democratic lawmakers have called on Biden to withdraw from the race, the vast majority of the party has said it will support the president if he accepts the Democratic nomination.
Biden faced no serious challengers in the Democratic primary and won millions of votes from the party faithful, earning 3,896 delegates over the course of the campaign, well over the 1,968 needed to clinch the nomination. He remains the clear choice for Democratic voters and continues to compete with Trump in the polls.
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, Julia Johnson of Fox News Digital and Anne Marie Riha of Fox News contributed to this report.
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