House Democrats withdraw letter asking to delay Biden’s nomination

A group of House Democrats concerned about President Joe Biden’s plans for an early virtual nomination for reelection withdrew a letter asking the Democratic National Committee to delay the plan after the DNC confirmed Wednesday that the nominating process will not take place before August.

The letter was originally written and circulated by U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman (D, Calif.). U.S. Rep. Susan Wild (D, Pa.), who represents the Lehigh Valley, was among the lawmakers planning to sign the letter.

“We are pleased that the pressure worked and the DNC will not be rushing this virtual process into July,” a Huffman spokesman said. “We will not be sending a letter at this time.”

The letter, which was never sent, raised “grave concerns” about the virtual roll call scheduled for July 21, a month before the Democratic National Convention, which is set to begin Aug. 19. The letter said stifling ongoing debate within the party with an early nomination would be a “terrible idea.”

“This could seriously undermine Democratic morale and unity.”

While the party still plans to hold a virtual nomination, it announced on Wednesday a delay to the virtual nominating process after details of Huffman’s letter were leaked.

Adam Bonin, a Philadelphia lawyer who serves on the DNC Rules Committee, posted a letter on social media informing members that no virtual voting will take place before Aug. 1.

“We will not be rushing into a virtual voting process, but we will begin meaningful deliberations on what such a process will look like,” the DNC wrote in a letter ahead of the committee’s July 19 meeting.

Biden has so far managed to overcome the backlash against his campaign following a destitute performance in a June debate.

But skepticism about his ability to win in November continues to grow, especially among vulnerable Democrats in Congress. Wild represents a swing district in the Lehigh Valley that is a key target for Republicans this fall. Wild won her 2022 race by just 2 percentage points.

Nearly two dozen Democratic lawmakers have called on Biden to drop out of the race, though those statements stopped after the failed assassination attempt on Donald Trump on Saturday.

Biden has said he will be the party’s nominee and that any other candidate would have to voluntarily withdraw to be eligible to run, but many Democrats are still actively debating his future.

The party announced in May that it would hold early voting to ensure Biden qualifies for the ballot in Ohio, where the original deadline was Aug. 7, but the state has since changed its rules, making the issue no longer relevant, the letter said.

Wild was the first Pennsylvania member to indicate she would support the letter. She raised — first in a private conversation leaked to reporters and then in a statement — concerns about how Biden could lower the candidate’s profile.

Wild said in a statement last week that, like many Americans, she is still “grappling with … the possibility of President Biden being elected to the top of the ticket.”

U.S. Rep. Andy Kim (D., N.J.), a candidate for U.S. Senate, expressed concern about the state of the Democratic Party as Biden remains at the top of the ticket.

“If he wants to go in that direction, he has to show that we have unity among the rest of the Democratic leadership, and that’s something we don’t have right now,” Kim said in an interview Wednesday on MSNBC. “I think he has to be the one to bring everyone together.”

Where Pennsylvania Democrats Stand

In Pennsylvania, Biden received a resounding endorsement from Sen. John Fetterman, who welcomed him during a visit earlier this month along with Sen. Bob Casey and U.S. Reps. Madeleine Dean and Brendan Boyle. U.S. Reps. Dwight Evans, Mary Gay Scanlon and Chris Deluzio also issued statements of support.

Wild isn’t the only Pennsylvania Democrat taking issue with Biden. Three other Democrats are reluctant to support the president. U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan said she was still weighing her options on Capitol Hill last week. The New York Times reported that that Biden, in a Zoom call with moderate Democrats including Houlahan, downplayed concerns Houlahan had raised about his lead in Pennsylvania being 4 or 5 percentage points. A source confirmed that account to The Inquirer.

U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, who is running for re-election in the key northeastern Pennsylvania region, also has not said where he stands in the debate over Biden.

U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, a progressive Pittsburgh resident, also declined to comment on her position on Biden remaining the nominee.

This article contains information from the Associated Press.