They may not have a candidate yet, but key advisers and high-profile supporters backing a Joe Biden run for president are expanding their planning for a possible campaign. That includes the legwork needed to put the vice president on state ballots for next year’s nomination contests, a source close to the operation tells CNN.
“Everyone is keenly aware of deadlines,” a source inside the Draft Biden movement said. “We’ve started to look to see what we can do on the Draft Biden side to prepare. For example, pledge to get Joe on ballot kind of work.”
The interest in ballot deadlines are an important signal that aides close to Biden have enough reason to suspect the vice president may, in fact, decide to jump into the race, even though he voiced some major doubts about such a prospect just last week in an interview on “The Late Show” with Stephen Colbert.
Another reason for the focus on primary and caucus requirements is that they come after the late September-early October timeline floated by several people close to the vice president in recent weeks, in essence giving Biden more time to make his decision.
“Lots of scenarios floating around,” said one Draft Biden official about the potential for a decision later in the fall than originally expected.
In his interview with Colbert, Biden sounded uncertain that he has the emotional stamina to mount another presidential campaign following the death of his son, Beau Biden.
“I’d be lying if I said that I knew I was there,” Biden said.
Rather than accept the Colbert interview as a sign their candidate will forgo a White House run, Draft Biden officials pointed to the public’s powerful response to Biden heartfelt and brutally honest late-night appearance as a compelling reason the vice president should join the race.
“What we saw was the honesty and authenticity that Americans are craving — it’s what they want in a president, which is why it’s so important for the vice president to run,” said a memo sent to reporters by Draft Biden over the weekend.
Jon Cooper, Draft Biden’s national finance chair, said he heard from major former Obama donors who were so moved by the Colbert interview that they called the next day to commit to a Biden candidacy.
“I think it’s much more likely than not (the vice president enters the race),” said Cooper who added the organization is on track to raise $2.5 to 3 million by the end of the month.
“His stock is friggin’ rising,” another major Democratic fundraiser said about the vice president, noting Biden’s and Hillary Clinton’s poll numbers are quickly moving in opposite directions.
“That’s not a bad trajectory to watch for a while,” the fundraiser added, saying Biden may be much more serious about a run privately than he appears publicly.
Even as Biden hinted in the Colbert interview that he may decide against a campaign, the vice president was keeping his options open by sitting down with prominent Democratic party fundraiser, Robert Wolf, a former chairman and CEO of the financial giant, UBS.
The meeting, which occurred during the vice president’s trip to New York City last week, was first reported by Bloomberg.
Wolf, who confirmed the meeting to CNN, has also served as an economic adviser to the White House and is a friend of President Barack Obama. He played golf with Obama and comedian Larry David in Martha’s Vineyard last month.
Another factor working in the vice president’s favor is his rising White House profile, thanks mostly to all of the campaign chatter. His speeches on topics ranging from the economy to the environment are now major national and local media events, as reporters await clues about the vice president’s intentions. Later this week, Biden will travel to Los Angeles for a climate event hosted by that city’s mayor.
Last week, Draft Biden officials held meetings in Washington, gauging interest inside the vice president’s circle of trusted advisers.
Steve Schale, a key Draft Biden official who ran Obama’s 2008 campaign in Florida, sat down with Biden senior adviser Greg Schultz, a person familiar with the conversation said.
“We’re being told ‘keep doing what you’re doing,'” a prominent Draft Biden official said.
The official also seized on Hillary Clinton’s recent slide in national polls. What happens if she loses the first two contests to Bernie Sanders, the official asked, referring to Iowa and New Hampshire.
“What will that coverage be like?” the official said.
A Democratic official, who is both familiar with White House thinking and in touch with Biden’s team, said the Colbert interview is the strongest indication yet that the vice president may decline a third bid for the presidency.
The White House still views Hillary Clinton as a strong candidate for president, the Democratic official said.
“She’s taken on a lot of water,” the official said, in reference to her handling of questions about her use of a private email server as secretary of state. “But if there’s anybody who can handle it, she can.”
