President Joe Biden is set to meet with a group of Democratic governors on Wednesday as he and his top aides try to quell growing concern about his ability to retain the party’s nomination in the November election.
Earlier in the day, White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zientz will hold a meeting with the entire staff at the White House, according to a source familiar with the plan. Biden campaign chairwoman Jen O’Malley Dillon and Biden campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodriguez will hold one-on-one talks with campaign staff, according to an email from senior leadership obtained by NBC News.
A Democratic lawmaker, Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, already has He called on Biden to back down fears that his bid for re-election and his escape from the reserve could prompt a number of elected officials to move to break with the president. Others said we are waiting for the new round of the election Assessing whether Biden’s support has cratered and whether his debate performance has affected any close down-ballot races.
Tuesday’s meeting with governors comes after a group of state executives met separately Tuesday at the invitation of Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn., who serves as chairman of the Democratic Governors Association.
Walz, as well as Democratic Govs. California’s Gavin Newsom, Illinois’ JB Pritzker, Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer, New York’s Kathy Hochul and Kentucky’s Andy Beshir plan to attend the meeting in person at the White House, while others will attend virtually.
A Democratic source familiar with the meeting plans said the governors are backing Biden and that “at a time when everybody wants to get back to the primary opposition in this race, they want to hear from the president and provide key insights from their states as allies and people who have been there as surrogates for his campaign.”
Zientz’s meeting with White House staff will underscore previous messages to senior staff to “weather the storm” and “keep your head down.”
A White House official told NBC News: “This is a call with the staff about the importance of continuing to do the job and continue to accomplish the mission.”
The campaign’s comprehensive meeting was billed by O’Malley Dillon and Chavez Rodriguez as “a quick call for the entire staff to check in as a team.”
In an email to campaign staff, the two campaign leaders said that “moving forward, we will be using emails and all-staff calls more frequently to make sure you all have the latest updates and broader campaign priorities for the day.”
The two also told staffers that Wednesday’s focus will be to emphasize that the race remains stable, contrast former President Donald Trump and boost upcoming events in the battleground state, such as Biden’s upcoming visit to Wisconsin on Friday.
Catherine Doyle, Bridget Bowman and Peter Alexander contributed.