Biden aides make their case to Democratic lawmakerspublished at 22:33 11 July
Bernd Debusmann Jr
US reporter
Ahead of tonight’s highly anticipated news conference, some of Joe Biden’s top advisers met with Democratic lawmakers in a bid to reassure them about his path to re-election and fitness for office.
Sources told CBS, the BBC’s US partners, that long-time Biden speechwriter Mike Donilon, Biden campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon and Steve Ricchetti, counselor to the president attended the lunch meeting with senators.
The meeting took place behind closed doors, and lawmakers told reporters that they agreed to not discuss details.
Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow, however, said that the Biden staffers had outlined an “aggressive plan” for the election, adding that when asked whether the president would stay in the race, they “certainly didn’t show anything to the contrary”.
Connecticut Democrat Richard Blumenthal – who on Wednesday said that he was “deeply concerned” about Biden’s chances of beating Donald Trump – said after the meeting that his “concerns remain” and that he needs to “hear and see more”.
He characterised the meeting as “constructive, serious, frank”.
Senator Pete Welch – the only Democrat in the Senate to publicly call on Biden to step aside – said that the meeting did not change his position, according to Axios.