A House Democrat who has called for Joe Biden to step aside confronted the president directly on a virtual meeting Friday, telling him it was time for someone else to lead, according to two people familiar with the matter.
The host of the meeting — between the Congressional Hispanic Caucus' political arm and Biden — ended it shortly after Rep. Mike Levin's (D-Calif.) comment. The president hosted meetings with various factions of House Democrats anxious about his future on the ticket on Friday and has more planned over the weekend.
Shortly after the meeting wrapped up, Levin, who hails from a purple district, put out a statement calling on Biden to end his reelection campaign.
Several others in that group, however, are among Biden’s more vocal proponents on the Hill. Rep. Sylvia Garcia (D-Texas) and Rep. Lou Correa (D-Calif.) appeared to be "pre-selected" to ask questions, according to a person familiar with the call.
“He sounded very lucid, sharp, engaged,” said another pro-Biden Democrat who attended the meeting, who declined to speak about members’ private comments in the meeting.
The meeting left Biden-skeptical Hispanic Democrats feeling unsatisfied with his campaign. Biden showed up an hour late to the Hispanic Caucus meeting, according to one of the people familiar with the matter.
Biden has been trying to shore up support with key blocs on the Hill, scheduling other meetings with the political arms of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, the centrist New Democrat Coalition and the Progressive Caucus, according to five people familiar with the matter.
Leaders of the New Democrats had met with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries earlier this week to voice concerns about Biden’s impact on their purple-district lawmakers.
Progressive Caucus Chair Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) has offered her own lukewarm support of the president, too. And the chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.), has voiced concerns about Biden's candidacy.
