Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) reportedly privately expressed doubt if President Joe Biden can actually win following widespread panic sparked from his poor debate performance, according to reports from Politico Playbook, citing “half-dozen lawmakers and others who have spoken with her or are familiar with these conversations.” However, Pelosi is denying this.
According to the report, Pelosi has been working behind the scenes and carefully crafting her responses, some of which she hoped would “serve as a subtle green light” to “encourage members to speak up about their desire to see change atop the ticket — and to warn Biden to reconsider staying in the race.”
Despite Pelosi’s insistence on redirecting concerns to Trump, Politico Playbook reports that “in private conversations with lawmakers, we’re told, the former Speaker hasn’t tried to hide her disdain for the situation that party now finds itself in.”
“She’s suggested to people that Biden won’t win this November and should step aside, according to about a half-dozen lawmakers and others who have spoken with her or are familiar with these conversations,” the outlet continued, reporting that the former Speaker is also advising Democrats to wait to make their determinations until after the NATO summit. She has made that latter point publicly, telling members to “let him deal with this NATO conference” first.
According to Politico Playbook, some members appear to be listening, drafting statements that they will be prepared to release once the summit is over.
However, reports that Pelosi privately said Biden will not win contradicts the statement she made in a hostile Q&A with a reporter this week, where she fended off questions on Biden’s future. However, during the back and forth, Pelosi did say that she believes Biden can win.
Nevertheless, Politico Playbook said Pelosi essentially denied the outlet’s reporting via a spokesperson.
“Publicly and privately, Speaker Pelosi has acknowledged the concerns that many have expressed in recent days but has repeatedly said that she fully supports whatever President Biden decides to do,” a spokesperson told the outlet.
Indeed, Pelosi has carefully responded to Democrat’s calls for Biden to step down, initially pivoting the conversation to former President Donald Trump. Mere days after the debate, Pelosi appeared on CNN’s State of the Union and stated that it is Trump — not Biden — who could be suffering from dementia.
“By the way, the press — and for some reason they don’t, there are healthcare professionals who think that Trump has dementia,” Pelosi said.
“That his connection of his thoughts does not go together. It’s not only that, he just lies. He doesn’t even know the truth. So, if we’re talking about mental acuity, let’s be fair about it,” she added.
WATCH — Pelosi: Trump Likely Has Dementia, “He Doesn’t Even Know the Truth”:
Pelosi continued to publicly deflect on the questions of Biden’s physical and mental stamina in other television hits as well. For instance, while she admitted that it was a “legitimate question” to ask if Biden’s debate performance was an episode or condition, she again brought Trump into the mix during a hit on MSNBC.
“He has a vision. He has knowledge. He has judgment. He has strategic thinking and the rest. He had a bad night. Again, I think it’s a legitimate question to say, is this an episode or is this a condition? When people ask that question, it’s legitimate, of both candidates,” she said, essentially softening the blow by mentioning “both” candidates.
WATCH — Pelosi: “Legitimate” to Ask if Biden Debate Was an Episode or a Condition:
Trump addressed Pelosi’s chatter in a Truth Social post Wednesday, stating that she, 84, is “more of a cognitive mess than Sleepy Crooked Joe” and suffering from “a terminal case of TDS, Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
“She is a total nut job, who impeached me TWICE, and lost. Now I see her going around, barely, and saying that I am a threat to Democracy. No, this is just Radical Left Democrat Disinformation, which is all that they’re good at,” Trump said, adding that Pelosi is “trying to convince anyone that will listen that Crooked Joe is a mental giant, and in great form, which everyone knows, he is not.”