Many Democratic senators declined to speak to reporters on Tuesday after leaving the Capitol following a marathon closed-door session in which they discussed whether President Joe Biden should seek reelection following his poor performance in last month's debate.
And those who did declined to say whether any of their colleagues had called on Biden to drop out of the race.
So far, no Democratic senator has publicly called for the president to step down, despite the fact that many have serious reservations about his candidacy.
Asked if anyone had called on Biden to step down, he said, “I'm not going to get into that.”
Debbie Stabenow, the No. 3 Democrat in the Michigan State Senate, told reporters the meeting focused on the dangers of a Trump reshuffle and the Biden administration's successes, including how it has brought jobs to the state.
But when asked if any Democrats had called on Biden to drop out of the race, she paused: “No, I don't think so. I don't think so. This is a private family discussion.”
CNN pressed her on whether her refusal to answer questions was because she acknowledged that some of her colleagues had called for the president to step down, a claim she refuted but did not answer the question.
“No, no. Actually, um… this is pre… I'm not going to say anything more,” she said.
Asked whether any agreement had been reached at the meeting, Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware, a strong Biden ally, would say only that it had been a “constructive conversation.”
After the debate, other senators who had publicly expressed concerns about Biden's fitness to serve and called on him to demonstrate he was fit for the job declined to discuss the private meeting.
