Three-term Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., on Monday called on President Joe Biden to "more aggressively" make his case on defeating Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump in November, saying, "Now is the time for conversations about the strongest path forward."
Warner's statement comes three days after a report that he was seeking to assemble a group of Democrat senators to meet with Biden in an effort to convince him to drop out of the presidential race or at least express their concerns directly.
Warner's plans to convene a meeting for Monday were scuttled, Axios reported Monday. The Washington Post's report on Friday put the kibosh on Warner's efforts to organize a private meeting, according to Axios. Biden was even asked about the Warner report in his interview with ABC News that aired Friday night.
Instead, Warner released this statement:
"With so much at stake in the upcoming election, now is the time for conversations about the strongest path forward. As these conversations continue, I believe it is incumbent upon the President to more aggressively make his case to the American people, and to hear directly from a broader group of voices about how to best prevent Trump's lawlessness from returning to the White House."
With lawmakers back in session after a two-week recess, Warner told reporters Monday he's looking forward to being able to "talk face-to-face with my colleagues" about the election, The Hill reported.
No Democrat senator has publicly called for Biden to step aside. Privately, however, Democrats in the upper chamber have shared their concerns that Biden's spot atop the ticket is "untenable" in the aftermath of his debate performance 10 days ago, according to the Post report.
Six House Democrats so far have called on Biden to exit the presidential race.
Biden, however, during an interview Monday morning criticized the "elites" of the Democratic Party and dared anyone to "challenge me at the convention." That came after a letter to congressional Democrats, admonishing them for the intraparty drama and called for it to end. In both cases, Biden's message was the same: "I'm firmly committed to staying in this race."