Two reporters from Punchbowl News:
Jake Sherman
@JakeSherman
INSIDE THE ROOM -- The House Democratic Caucus meeting about President Joe Biden's political standing is starting to empty out.
One House Democrat supportive of Biden told me it "felt like a funeral."
There is definitely no consensus on Biden. Lots of talk about how difficult the situation is for Dems.
Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.) said that putting Harris atop the ticket would be setting her up for failure.
Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) said he saw a poll recently that had Biden losing in his district. Biden won his district with 62% of the vote last time.
Heather Caygle
@heatherscope
Here's the thing, Jake/Bres/I have talked to a lot of Democrats and do so quite frequently.
I haven't talked to one who privately says they think Biden is capable of running and beating Trump at this point.
The debate was just a public airing of the concerns many of them have experienced/expressed privately. And that was from those who felt they actually got time with the president over the last year. Others have complained about very limited/controlled interactions.
BUT they also don't want to be ostracized publicly and/or feel it's already determined that Biden will be the nominee.
"No consensus" on Biden, says Roll Call.
Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, who had previously called for Biden to step aside, said as he left the Democratic huddle that "the debate cannot be unseen."
"The president has been running behind. We needed a surge. We got a setback. He is a great man who has made a great contribution to the country," Doggett said, adding of a possible Trump second term: "But he shouldn't leave a legacy that endangers us, that we surrender to a tyrant."
Rep. Lou Correa, D-Calif., told reporters that "voters chose Biden as their nominee, not us in a closed room." He also downplayed what is seen as Biden's biggest weakness, that he'd be the oldest president ever elected if he wins in November.
"There's concerns about everything. There's concerns about Trump. When you talk about [Biden's] age, I mean, 80 is the new 60," Correa said.
LOL. But for Biden, 80 is the new 108. He is indeed a "super-ager," but not in a good way: He ages faster than most people.
He's not 80, either. He's 82.
Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., said Biden "deserves our support" and vowed to "go to several states" on the president's behalf. "Biden is going to win," she added.
...
But Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., left the session saying he still has concerns about Biden's ability to run again and serve out another four-year term.
"He'll bring the ticket down this time," Quigley said. "He just has to step down because he can't win, and my colleagues need to recognize that. A dismissive letter is not going to change any minds."
RealClearPolitics' average of multiple national polls, updated Tuesday, gave Trump a 47.5 percent to 44.1 percent lead. At the same point in the 2020 race, Biden led Trump by 9 percentage points in the RCP average, and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton led him by 4.7 percentage points in 2016. Some recent polling suggests Vice President Kamala Harris would do better in a head-to-head race against Trump.
A poll of Wisconsin voters released Tuesday by AARP showed Trump led Biden 44 percent to 38 percent on a multi-candidate ballot and 50 percent to 45 percent in a head-to-head matchup. The same survey, however, showed Sen. Tammy Baldwin leading likely Republican opponent Eric Hovde 50 percent to 45 percent.
So publicly they say they're "Ridin' with Biden."
But super-leftwing Democrat Steve Cohen (I think) says that Democrats have not come to any agreement on Biden. When asked if they're "on the same page," he says no, they're "not even in the same book."