A wealthy group of Democratic donors has committed $2 million to support additional debates among presidential candidates in case President Joe Biden chooses to withdraw from the race, as per The Washington Post’s report on Friday.
The group, spearheaded by former Intuit and PayPal CEO Bill Harris, is advocating for an inclusive Democratic primary to determine the successor to the current president. This initiative is purportedly intended to avoid a scenario where Vice President Kamala Harris becomes the presumptive nominee if Biden opts to halt his re-election campaign, as per the report.
“It’s not that we have to protect ourselves from chaos and drama,” Bill Harris argued. “We need drama and a little chaos. I think it can be refreshing and energizing.”
Bill Harris, a former chief executive of Intuit and PayPal, said he is leading a small group of Democratic donors who have pledged $2 million to help fund presidential debates among potential nominees if President Biden decides to step aside. https://t.co/MAxCcAGTzN
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) July 5, 2024
Harris refuted the assertion that ordinary voters were unaffected by Biden’s performance in the initial presidential debate. It is worth mentioning that Harris commissioned two exclusive surveys conducted by Emerson College since 2023 to investigate concerns that voters may have regarding Biden’s age, with a third survey currently in progress, as reported by the outlet.
“It’s the opposite,” he said. “The voters have been there for a long time, and it’s the Democratic establishment and the Beltway community that has been so slow and reluctant to face reality.”
Harris also foresaw Biden’s resignation as an unavoidable outcome.
“I don’t think it matters whether the president does well or does poorly this evening — this concern is bigger than a single interview and bigger than a single debate,” he wrote to The Washington Post ahead of Biden’s Friday interview with ABC. “It is a rolling thunder that will not crest or subside.”
