WASHINGTON (AP) — The mood on Capitol Hill turned grimly uncertain Tuesday as Democrats wrestled over President Joe Biden’s re-election and the extraordinary question before them — whether to stand behind his candidacy or push the president to bow out amid concerns over his ability to lead them to victory. House and Senate Democrats met privately with tensions running high. The conversation was “dour” and “sad” in the House, lawmakers said, as they discussed their party leader who emphatically refuses to step aside and implored them in a sharply worded letter to refocus from him to the threat posed by Republican Donald Trump.
In the Senate, where Biden spent a storied career, they said even less. What could become a time for Democrats to bolster their president, who remains the favorite for some despite his poor debate performance and public appearances, instead fell deeper into crisis over real fears they could lose the White House and Congress and watch the rise of a second term Trump. “We had a caucus meeting today that gave members an opportunity to express themselves in a candid and comprehensive fashion,” said House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York, “and those discussions will continue throughout the balance of the week.
” It’s a remarkable moment for the president and his party with Democrats in Congress seriously questioning Biden’s place at the top of the ticket, weeks before the Democratic National Convention to nominate him for.
