Put Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) in front of a camera, and he’ll praise Joe Biden to the ends of the earth. That said, he recently admitted on “Meet the Press” that Biden's age is an issue.
“Given Joe Biden’s incredible record, given Donald Trump’s terrible record, he should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump. Joe Biden’s running against a criminal. It should not be even close. And there’s only one reason it is close, and that’s the president’s age,” he said. "And what I would what I would say, Kristen, what I would advise the President, is seek out the opinions of people you trust. He's obviously talked to his family about this. And that's important but he should seek out people with some distance and objectivity. He should seek pollsters who are not his own pollsters. He should take a moment to make the best-informed judgment. And if the judgment is run, then run hard and beat that S.O.B."
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Obviously, it wasn’t a full-throttled defense of Biden in light of calls for him to drop out. He’s trying to have things both ways and suggests that Biden still has a chance of winning in November. But when the cameras aren’t rolling, he says something completely different.
“I think if he is our nominee, I think we lose,” Schiff said during a private meeting with donors on Saturday, according to a report from the New York Times. “And we may very, very well lose the Senate and lose our chance to take back the House.”
Ouch!
Mr. Schiff’s remarks underscore the depth of the concerns in the president’s party about the prospects for downballot Democrats if Mr. Biden remains in the race, even if most senior Democrats are still unwilling to express such dire warnings in public.
The event was held in East Hampton, N.Y., shortly before Mr. Trump was shot on Saturday. Public calls from Democrats for Mr. Biden to step aside as a candidate have dropped off since the attempt on Mr. Trump’s life, providing Mr. Biden, who is insisting the he will remain in the race, an opportunity to overcome the dissent.
In an effort to end the internal battle, leaders of the Democratic National Committee are moving to formally nominate Mr. Biden as the party’s candidate by the end of the month, weeks before their convention in Chicago in August.
The fund-raiser at which Mr. Schiff spoke was held for him; Representative Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, who is running for Senate; and another Senate candidate, Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland.
Schiff reportedly also criticized the Biden campaign for ignoring outside pollsters and experts and only listening to those who are telling the campaign what it wants to hear. A donor, feeling dejected after hearing Schiff’s remarks, believed Biden’s chances of winning were slim and suggested focusing resources on down-ballot races.
Schiff’s campaign declined to comment for the New York Times story.
In response, Biden’s campaign highlighted strong support from members of Congress, noting that only a few have publicly opposed his candidacy. The campaign also emphasized backing from groups like the Congressional Black Caucus — essentially proving the point Schiff made to donors.
Several Democratic strategists have also said that the presidential election has “ended” and are urging Democrats to focus on down-ballot races in the hopes of flipping the House and holding the Senate.
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