US President Joe Biden faced fresh doubts on Wednesday (10 July) about his re-election chances from influential figures including Nancy Pelosi and George Clooney, who may sway other Democratic lawmakers and financial donors, along with two Senate Democrats.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a longtime Biden ally, indicated on MSNBC that Biden must decide quickly whether to remain in the 2024 White House race, though she stopped short of definitively endorsing his candidacy.
Hollywood star George Clooney, who co-hosted a high-profile fundraiser for Biden last month, withdrew his support in a critical opinion piece in the New York Times, stating that Biden was not the same man he was in 2020.
According to Axios, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has privately suggested he is open to a Democratic candidate other than Biden. However, Schumer reaffirmed his support for Biden in a statement following the Axios report.
Senator Peter Welch became the first Democratic senator to explicitly call for Biden to step aside, publishing an op-ed late on Wednesday urging the president to withdraw from the race.
A major donor indicated that Democratic leaders had planned to issue statements of concern after the NATO summit, without specifically naming Schumer. “It’s going to be a bloodbath,” the source said, citing growing frustration among lawmakers and donors, as well as increasing pressure on down-ballot candidates.
