Van Jones, a former Obama administration official, said Wednesday that Democrats are discussing behind closed doors “what to do” to appoint a top candidate to replace President Biden, “not whether to do it.”
A CNN commentator said Democrats defending Biden on television amid growing concern within the Democratic Party about his status as the presumptive nominee are having a “very different” conversation in private.
“I understand that people want to defend Biden, protect him, give him the space and dignity to make his own choices,” Jones told CNN’s Jim Sciutto on Wednesday about Biden.
“But right now the big debate is not whether this will happen, but how it will happen,” he added.
Jones painted a picture of a chaotic situation as Democrats seek a way forward in private discussions.
“Behind the scenes, there’s a lot of panic,” Jones said. “People are passing around legal memos, there’s PDFs flying around on WhatsApp, trying to figure out what their options are. How do we replace Biden? How do we get him to pay respect when he should?”
Jones suggested Democrats are operating under the assumption that Vice President Kamala Harris will be the next president. One of the questions Democrats are trying to answer is, “Who should Kamala Harris’ running mate be?” Jones said.
Jones praised Biden as a “fantastic candidate” but said Democrats must take responsibility for determining the best path forward.
“You have people who love this country. You have people who have given everything to this country. You have people who have given every last drop of their life, and yet they may not make it across the finish line,” Jones said. “Any mature political party has to reckon with that. And that’s what’s happening now.”
Two House Democrats have already called for Biden to step down and several others have expressed serious concerns about his ability to defeat former President Trump. The White House and Biden’s campaign have maintained that Biden is capable of serving another four years as president and have dismissed his shaky debate performance as just a bad night.
