Biden fundraiser warns of 'catastrophic mistake,' says big-money donations have 'suddenly disappeared'
Top Democratic fundraiser Lindy Li says it is getting more and more difficult to bring in donations for President Biden's re-election campaign as calls for him to withdraw continue to mount.
Li made the statement during an appearance on Fox News Sunday with host Shannon Bream. Bream pressed Li on whether Biden should stay in the race and whether Vice President Kamala Harris is the right candidate to replace him.
"Fundraising has -- big money fundraising has slowed. People -- major donors who have pledged massive amounts of checks, and I’m talking six, seven -- seven-figure checks have suddenly disappeared, fallen off the face of the Earth, rescinded their pledges," Li said.
"It's just hard because a lot of these people are successful business people and they see the election as a business proposition. And they would only bet on a campaign if it's a winning prospect. But it's just -- I wish I had better news, but I’m also not here to give you talking points. This is just the truth," she added.
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Bream then asked about Harris and whether she is the best candidate to take Biden's place if he withdraws.
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"Skipping over Kamala Harris would be political malpractice. Full stop, end of story. The base -- our base, Black Americans in particular, is why we defeated Trump at all," Li responded.
"It's not my place to tell President Biden what to do but if he were to step aside, Vice President Kamala Harris would be an excellent candidate. She's a consummate prosecutor and she's out there every single day effectively prosecuting the case, litigating the case against convicted felon Trump," she said.
"It would be a catastrophic mistake to skip over her," she said.
While Biden and his staff have publicly insisted that he is staying in the race, the 81-year-old is reportedly now asking whether Harris could win, according to the New York Times. Several polls show Harris matching or even exceeding Biden's performance against Trump as waves of Democrats call on Biden to withdraw.
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Harris stands as the most obvious candidate to replace Biden thanks in large part to her presumed access to the Biden-Harris war chest should the president withdraw. Any other candidate would face an uncertain path to accessing the tens of millions of dollars donated throughout the race.
The White House pushed back on the Times report in a statement to Fox News Digital, saying Biden is locked in on campaigning.
"That claim is false and The New York Times did not ask us about it. As Jen O’Malley Dillon said, he ‘is more committed than ever.’ And as you heard from the President, he looks forward to campaigning this week," said White House spokesman Andrew Bates.