The Archive

IN THIS EDITION

Biden has made a mess of the Democratic Party

Inside the House Freedom Caucus meltdown

Schneider, Davids vie for New Dems top slot

Johnson, top Republicans fundraise for Downing

THE TOP

Biden has made a mess of the Democratic Party

Happy Wednesday morning.

We’re now just short of two weeks since President Joe Biden’s disastrous presidential debate performance in Atlanta. And Biden has succeeded where no other politician has these last few years — making Republicans look both competent and unified.

Biden’s catastrophic showing and the ensuing drama have turned the Democratic Party on Capitol Hill completely upside down.

Democrats spent much of this Congress watching from the sidelines as Republicans tore themselves apart over former Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the return of former President Donald Trump.

The president’s party liked and respected Biden for leading them to a series of big legislative wins over the last few years. There was definitely angst over Biden’s reelection chances, but it was manageable. The brutal war in Gaza and the White House’s failure to find an effective message on immigration and inflation were serious problems. Yet there was a sense that maybe Biden was turning the corner as the summer began and he’d be able to hammer Trump for the rest of the campaign, especially after Trump’s conviction in the New York hush-money case.

That all vanished in 90 minutes on June 27. Rank-and-file Democrats now find themselves caught between a president who says he isn’t going anywhere — and who’s working hard to stamp down dissent — and their own political futures.

Consider this:

— In a closed-door Senate Democratic Caucus meeting Tuesday, Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) expressed doubts about Biden’s prospects given the current situation.

Appearing on CNN with Kaitlan Collins Tuesday night, Bennet said Trump “is on track, I think, to win this election and maybe win it by a landslide and take with him the Senate and the House.” Bennet added: “The White House has done nothing since the debate to demonstrate they have a plan to win this election.” Watch the video here.

— Senate Democrats were far from united about whether Biden is the best person to defeat Trump. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) told us that Biden needs to “continue to aggressively make his case” to his fellow Democratic senators in order to “earn full support.”

— New Jersey Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill issued a statement Tuesday afternoon calling on Biden to step aside in favor of another Democratic candidate.

Fellow New Jersey Democratic Rep. Andy Kim — who’s running for Senate — walked right up the line of whether Biden should get out.

“I’m still thinking this through,” Kim told reporters. “What steps can we actually take right now [to replace Biden.] That’s where some of the confusion is. Especially with all the talk of what are the actual deadlines. It’s hard to kind of make a decision without fully understanding that. We need to get a better grasp on it.”

— House Democratic leaders met privately with some of their most vulnerable members Tuesday morning. As we reported in our PM edition, the conversation about Biden’s viability was “honest, brutal and intense.” Some members were crying, according to sources with knowledge of the meeting.

— Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) still won’t say whether she backs Biden staying on the ticket. Jayapal said she has a sense of where her caucus is but isn’t ready to reveal it. The top progressive in the Senate, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), is sticking with Biden.

— Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus have griped to us that their leaders, Reps. Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.) and Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.), issued a statement expressing support for Biden without the full buy-in from their entire membership. Now other members are complaining that BOLD PAC, the CHC’s political arm, hasn’t issued its endorsement of Biden.

— George Stephanopoulos, the ABC News anchor who interviewed Biden last week, said in a TMZ video that he doesn’t think the president can serve for another four years. ABC News later said Stephanopoulos was reflecting his view, not the network’s. Stephanopoulos told Puck’s Dylan Byers he shouldn’t have answered the question.

— Biden’s defenders, especially those in the Senate, are fretting that their colleagues criticizing Biden are engaging in a “circular firing squad” that’s not only weakening the president but hurting Democrats down the ballot. This was a central pitch of Biden’s allies during the Senate Democratic lunch.

Some White House officials thought they had turned a corner after the House and Senate Democratic caucus sessions on Tuesday. There was a lot of venting and complaining during those gatherings, but no stampede to dump Biden. The leadership is sticking with Biden. The CBC and CHC largely back the president, which is especially important in the House.

But every new statement or bad poll is another brick pulled from the foundation. Biden is seemingly being undermined by a thousand small cuts from members of his own party.

— Jake Sherman, John Bresnahan, Melanie Zanona and Andrew Desiderio

CONSERVATIVE CORNER

Inside the House Freedom Caucus meltdown

News: The House Freedom Caucus may soon be headed for a shakeup as the group wrestles with its identity after weeks of turmoil.

HFC Chair Bob Good (R-Va.), who lost his primary race to a Trump-backed Republican primary challenger last month, has indicated to members that he plans to step down from his HFC post if he loses a recount, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.

Good said he plans to file a recount request this week before the Friday deadline. Good hasn’t said publicly whether he’d step down as HFC chair if he loses.

“Hopefully, things will still go my way and you can ask me if it doesn’t,” Good told us.

A vacancy would set off an immediate scramble for the chairmanship, and some lawmakers are already making their intentions known to colleagues. Among the names that have been floated for the top job: Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), a pro-Trump freshman who is facing a primary race of his own, and Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), who is respected in the HFC but endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over former President Donald Trump. Roy is currently the HFC’s policy chair.

Members of the HFC have urged Ogles to run, according to a source familiar. Ogles has confirmed he would launch a bid to succeed Good.

Roy declined to comment about the group’s internal affairs when we asked him about his plans.

The potential leadership shuffle comes as the HFC has been bitterly divided. The group is still dealing with the fallout from Monday night’s intense meeting, where multiple members told us emotions were running high as the group narrowly voted to oust Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio.). Davidson endorsed Good’s primary opponent, in part because Good initially endorsed DeSantis.

Not everyone agreed with the decision to boot Davidson. Several unhappy HFC members are now contemplating if they should remain in the group.

Yet whether any other lawmakers decide to quit may depend on whether Good steps aside. Good’s term as chair was supposed to run through the end of 2025, but the Virginia Republican could technically serve as HFC chief until he leaves Congress at the end of this year.

During Monday’s meeting, Davidson defended himself and longtime ally Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio).

Davidson accused Good of trying to undermine Jordan, who co-founded the HFC in 2015, according to members who were present. Just two weeks ago, Good ousted the executive director of the group’s political arm, a longtime Jordan ally.

Jordan declined to comment on the meeting but reiterated that he was “totally against kicking people out.”

One HFC member said the group is planning to move in “a new direction” by overhauling its fundraising operation and finding a new leader who has been loyal to Trump.

Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) confirmed that some members were upset about Davidson’s removal, but defended his vote to oust the Ohio Republican.

“Warren did this to himself,” Norman told us, referring to Davidson’s decision to go after Good.

Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas), who announced his resignation after Davidson was voted out, said he no longer felt aligned with the group after personality clashes distracted from its mission.

“I just didn’t think kicking him out was a very good idea,” Nehls told us. “I said, ‘If you get rid of him then I’ll be resigning.’”

— Melanie Zanona and Mica Soellner

HOUSE DEMOCRATS

Schneider, Davids vie for New Dems top slot

Reps. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) and Sharice Davids (D-Kan.) are launching their campaigns to lead the influential New Democrat Coalition next Congress with similar pitches.

Both candidates are portraying themselves as the right leaders to excel on the campaign side while notching legislative wins.

Under the leadership of retiring Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.), the block of center-left members played a critical role in the passage of major bipartisan bills this Congress. One hundred Democrats were members of the pro-business, pragmatic group this Congress. And with other centrist Democratic factions like the Blue Dogs declining in numbers, New Dems are set to be increasingly relevant.

Here’s an inside look at the race to replace Kuster.

Davids’ take: Davids, a Frontliner and former MMA fighter, says she’s running to provide “a different kind of leader than New Dems has had before.”

Davids, who flipped a red seat in 2018, said she’d be the first person elected after the 2012 cycle to lead the caucus. Plus, Davids would also be the first Native American lawmaker to head the group. Davids added that her “listen-first” leadership style would allow her to “tap into the talents of our pretty diverse membership.”

The Kansas Democrat said her experience winning tough elections would help her run the New Dem political operation, which boosts a number of fellow Frontliners and Red-to-Blue candidates.

“It’s helped me learn techniques and certainly an approach that balances our legislative responsibilities with the various campaign priorities that we have,” Davids said.

Davids currently serves as the vice chair for member services of the caucus.

Schneider’s story: Schneider told us he’s best positioned to lead on the two issues that he believes will animate the 2025 legislative agenda: taxes and foreign policy.

The Illinois Democrat, who serves as the New Dem vice chair of communications, sits on both the Foreign Affairs and Ways and Means panels. Schneider emerged as one of the House Democratic Caucus’ most outspoken pro-Israel voices in the months since the Hamas attack and the subsequent war in Gaza.

Schneider also pointed to his lengthy experience in New Dem leadership and electoral history as assets for his candidacy.

First elected in 2012, Schneider flipped a red seat before losing in 2014. Schneider then won back his seat the cycle after, touting how he “took a district that was a swing district and turned it into a New Dem district.”

Schneider has served as a New Dem vice chair for two terms, while also chairing the political arm of the New Dems.

As a potential leader of the caucus, Schneider said he would employ “more of an open management style, where everyone can be involved and have that chance to shine.”

The path forward: There’s still a while to go until the coalition will elect the new chair following the November elections. Stay tuned for more updates on the leadership race.

— Max Cohen

LEADERSHIP DOUGH

Scalise has best second quarter in history

News: House Majority Leader Steve Scalise raised $9.2 million in the second quarter of 2024, his largest Q2 haul in history.

Scalise has raised $45.5 million this cycle. The Louisiana Republican brought in $4.6 million from grassroots donors in the second quarter. Overall this cycle, Scalise raised $20.6 million online and has doled out $6.5 million to candidates. Scalise has also transferred $14 million to the NRCC.

Also: Marlene Ricketts, the wife of billionaire Joe Ricketts, contributed $3 million to ESAfund, the Ending Spending Action Fund. The super PAC has not played a role yet this cycle.

— Jake Sherman

THE MONEY GAME

Johnson, top Republicans fundraise for Downing

News: Speaker Mike Johnson, top members of House leadership, multiple Republican senators and rank-and-file House members are holding a fundraiser for Montana House candidate Troy Downing later this evening.

Downing recently won the Republican primary to succeed retiring GOP Rep. Matt Rosendale in Montana’s 2nd District. Downing serves as the Montana state auditor and defeated a number of primary opponents last month to advance to the general in the safe-red seat.

Check out the full invite below. Notably, this is a big sign of leadership support for Downing. Rosendale, comparatively, butted heads constantly with top Republicans.

Fundraising news: Democrat Curtis Hertel, who’s running to succeed Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin in Michigan’s 7th District, raised over $1.3 million in the second quarter and has more than $3 million on hand. The 7th District will be one of the most competitive seats in the country. Hertel will be facing Republican Tom Barrett in the general election.

Rep. Young Kim (R-Calif.) raised $1.2 million in the second quarter and has $3.7 million on hand. Kim – who represents California’s 40th District – has consistently outperformed national Republicans by winning competitive elections in her Orange County seat.

Dunn’s latest move: Harry Dunn, the former U.S. Capitol Police officer who raised millions of dollars during an unsuccessful run for Congress this year, is endorsing a number of Democratic Senate candidates through his PAC. The group, Democracy Defenders PAC, is backing Sens. Jon Tester (Mont.), Jacky Rosen (Nev.), Sherrod Brown (Ohio), Bob Casey (Pa.) and Tammy Baldwin (Wis.), in addition to Reps. Ruben Gallego (Ariz.), Adam Schiff (Calif.) and Colin Allred (Texas), and Lucas Kunce, running for Senate in Missouri, and Angela Alsobrooks, who is running for Senate in Maryland. The PAC is donating $2,500 to each and offering the candidates access to Dunn’s vaunted donor list.

— Max Cohen

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