One of the most endangered Senate Democrats refused to abandon President Joe Biden on Monday as more Capitol Hill Democrats continue to jump off the Biden bandwagon.
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), facing an uphill battle to win a fourth Senate term, will stand by Biden’s reelection campaign.
“I’m not a pundit,” Brown said Monday, according to NBC News. “I’ve talked to people across Ohio. They have legitimate questions about whether the president should continue his campaign, and I’ll keep listening to people.”
Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio today in Youngstown on the Biden question, per his campaign:
— Henry J. Gomez (@HenryJGomez) July 8, 2024
"I'm not a pundit. I've talked to people across Ohio. They have legitimate questions about whether the president should continue his campaign, and I'll keep listening to people."
Brown’s statement is hardly a ringing endorsement of Biden, but the Ohioan clearly will not call for Biden to walk away. His tepid endorsement of Biden demonstrates the narrow path to victory for the Democrat in the increasingly red state, made even more harrowing after Biden’s disastrous June 27 debate performance.
His comments mirrored those made on Monday by Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), another endangered Senate Democrat in a red state who, despite his bluster, is sticking with Biden.
Brown will face Republican Bernie Moreno, a well-funded businessman who earned former President Donald Trump’s endorsement during the primary, in the 2024 election.
Earlier in the day, Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) canceled a sit-down of Senate Democrats previously scheduled for Monday to discuss their growing Biden problem. The discussion of Biden’s viability in the race and his drag on down-ticket races will now take place during Democrats’ regularly scheduled Tuesday lunch.
Warner has been the most publicly critical Democrat Senator but has not yet called for Biden to end his campaign.
While Democrat Senators have publicly remained with Biden so far, the president has faced calls to quit his campaign from multiple House members, including powerful committee chairs Reps. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) and Adam Smith (D-WA).
The House and Senate were not in session during the first full week after Biden’s debate debacle. However, now back in the Capitol amid ongoing blowback for Biden from donors, voters, and the media, lawmakers must face a drama-hungry Capitol Hill press corps, and Democrats who have remained silent thus far will be pressed to reveal where they stand.
Bradley Jaye is a Capitol Hill Correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter at @BradleyAJaye.
