Milwaukee, Wisconsin
CNN
—

President Joe Biden on Friday faced a new round of defections from Democratic lawmakers who openly called on him to withdraw from the presidential race, as his campaign sought to send a message that he’s not going anywhere.

One day after the Republican National Convention, fresh public calls for Biden to withdraw from a dozen lawmakers — including Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico and California Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a close ally of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi — grew the list of congressional Democrats to more than 30.

Two House Democrats close to Pelosi, who spoke on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity and roughness in the party at the moment, attributed Friday’s new statements — particularly Lofgren’s letter to Biden — to the former speaker and her belief that it’s critical for the president and his allies to understand that efforts to oust him won’t go away after the Republican convention, despite the campaign’s efforts to suppress them.

The president has been described as “furious” with Pelosi by a source with direct knowledge. The source said the sentiment only grew after Lofgren, Pelosi’s longtime close lieutenant, released her letter Friday urging Biden to step aside. CNN has reached out to Pelosi’s camp and the Biden campaign for comment on this reporting.

It’s a notable break between two powerful party leaders and longtime allies over pushing through key elements of Biden’s agenda.

Aides to Vice President Kamala Harris, both inside and outside the campaign, have also expressed dismay at Pelosi and her statements about a quick process to find a new nominee if Biden leaves office.

For them, “process” means trying to bypass the vice president in the event the president steps aside. Harris, who has openly defended Biden and tried to show unity, spoke to donors in a call Friday afternoon, at the request of the West Wing, campaign officials said.

Biden’s campaign hoped to bring unity to the party on Friday by issuing a statement saying he looked forward to campaigning next week after being sidelined by Covid-19.

And Biden campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon said Friday morning on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that Biden was “absolutely” in the race.

“Absolutely the president is in this race. You’ve heard him say that over and over again, and I think we saw last night exactly why,” she said. “Joe Biden is more determined than ever to defeat Donald Trump.”

Instead, there was a flurry of new testimony from Democrats in the House of Representatives.

This dynamic has played out repeatedly this week, as more Democrats have openly expressed their desire for Biden to withdraw from the race — amid reports from Democratic leaders in Congress pressing Biden about his chances — even as the president repeatedly says he has no plans to withdraw.

A Democratic lawmaker told CNN that House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and his team are not discouraging members from speaking out against Biden’s candidacy.

The source indicated that they had the impression that members were privately encouraged to make such statements if they felt so.

According to this source, there are fears that public support, which is only expected to increase, is overblown and will anger Biden and possibly further embarrass him.

The source, who is in touch with the White House, said that while Biden is now more open to talking about a possible resignation, he “could go either way” and that the people he listens to don’t talk publicly.

Those concerns didn’t stop more calls for Biden to withdraw from the race on Friday.

Lofgren, who served on the House committee on Jan. 6, released a letter she sent to Biden urging him to step aside. “Simply put, your candidacy is on track to lose the White House and potentially impact crucial House and Senate races at the ballot box,” she wrote.

Heinrich was the third senator to publicly call for Biden to withdraw from the race, saying he believed it was “in the best interest of our country” for Biden to step aside.

“By passing the torch, he would secure his legacy as one of our country’s greatest leaders and allow us to unite behind a candidate who can best defeat Donald Trump and secure the future of our democracy,” Heinrich said in a statement.

Rep. Greg Landsman, an Ohio Democrat, told Dana Bash on CNN’s “Inside Politics” on Friday that it was time for Biden to withdraw.

“Passing the torch is the right thing to do,” Landsman said. “That’s the way to make sure Donald Trump doesn’t win the presidency.”

And four other House Democrats — Reps. Jared Huffman and Mark Pocan; Congressional Hispanic Caucus member Chuy Garcia; and Congressional Black Caucus member Marc Veasey — issued a joint statement Friday using the same “pass the torch” rhetoric.

“A passing of the torch would fundamentally change the course of the campaign,” they said. “It would revitalize the race and energize Democrats and give them momentum heading into our convention next month.”

Lawmakers urging Biden to stay in the race have warned of the uncharted waters the party would enter if Biden were to withdraw. Biden’s campaign issued a new memo on Friday saying there is “no plan for an alternative nominee.”

DNC officials met by phone Friday for a meeting of the congressional rules committee, where they provided some details about when the virtual slate of nominees for Biden’s renomination would be drawn up.

During the meeting, party leaders reiterated that voting would not begin before August 1, but did not set a specific date. Instead, according to the proposed plan, it will be up to party leadership to choose a date at a later date.

The rules committee took no action to approve the plan on Friday but will meet again next week.

This story has been updated with additional developments.