NJ Democrats are itchy about Joe Biden's future as their nominee. Here's why | Stile

Some New Jersey Democrats are propping up President Joe Biden with a heavy dose of populism.

“The corporate media and political elites want to dump President Biden because they'll benefit from the chaos,” said Atlantic County Democratic Chairman Michael Suleiman on Monday. “Regular folks I talk to outside of the political bubble are sticking with Joe, and so am I. Democratic primary voters overwhelmingly voted for the Biden-Harris ticket, and the wishes of our rank-and-file members should not be cast away.”

It’s a page ripped right out the playbook from that notable member of the elite from the outer boroughs — former New York real estate-casino corporate millionaire Donald Trump.

Biden himself got in on the game Monday as he went on the offensive to quell the rising revolt among Democrats eager for him to step aside and allow someone else to be the party’s standard bearer in November. He railed at them as elitists.

“I’m getting frustrated by the elites in the party, ‘Oh, they know so much more,’” Struggling Joe said to Morning Joe on MSNBC Monday morning. “Any of these guys that don’t think I should run, run against me. Announce for president, challenge me at the convention.”

Still, for all of Biden’s bravado, despite his defiant open letter to the party — carefully scrubbed for malaprops and mistakes — and the rallying of party loyalists from safe districts pooh-poohing the pearl clutching activists, the pressure to jettison the beloved and respected president continued to build. The discussion has already produced public calls for his replacement from nine House Democrats, and more are likely to do so in the coming days.

Where do NJ Democrats stand on Biden's re-election effort?

Late Tuesday afternoon, Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-Montclair, became the first member of the New Jersey congressional delegation to call on Biden to step aside for a new party nominee.

"I know that President Biden and his team have been true public servants and have put the country and the best interests of democracy first and foremost in their considerations. And because I know President Biden cares deeply about the future of our country, I am asking that he declare that he won’t run for reelection and will help lead us through a process toward a new nominee.”

Also, Rep. Andy Kim, D-Burlington, Democratic Party nominee for the U.S. Senate this fall, said in an interview with the New Jersey Globe on Tuesday that he had "concerns" about Biden's ability to remain at the top of the ticket. Kim also said he is "still thinking this through" but signaled that he was open to discussions on replacing Biden.

Former New Jersey Rep. Tom Malinowski made it clear Sunday in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that he felt it was time for Biden to step aside.

And in an interview Monday, Malinowski said Biden’s public letter was basically a rehash of what the president has been saying since his disastrous debate June 28 with Trump. That debate only reinforced in public the private misgivings many voters and Democratic Party leaders had about the ability of an octogenarian Biden to beat Trump in November.

“Every Democrat I know will be all in. helping him if he decides to stick it out because we can't let a dictator-loving-sociopath back into the White House,” said Malinowski, who is now the Hunterdon County Democratic Party chairman. “We also want to have a conversation about the best way to improve our chances.”

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Most NJ Democrats opt to duck for cover on Biden

Still, most New Jersey Democrats acted like their fellow New Jersey Republicans whenever they're forced to react to whatever the latest Trump firestorm is — they ducked for cover. Few had anything to say.

Of course, there was the cheerleading of Gov. Phil Murphy from his fundraiser with a teleprompter-toting Biden at the Murphy home along the Navesink River in Middletown:

"You're on fire and we are all with you 1,000%," Murphy told the president. The governor went on to call the president the "comeback kid."

But for the most part, they avoided the topic.

“I don’t think they were stepping into that," said one Democratic adviser.

Even at the heat-melting press event celebrating news of the final $6.8 billion in federal funding for the Gateway train tunnel project, New Jersey and New York Democrats carefully parsed their praise for the Biden administration’s push for the long-awaited infrastructure project. He is, after all, the infrastructure president — Amtrak Joe, in this case, put his money where his heart is.

"If there's any reason why we're here today, it's because President Joe Biden was elected,” said Sen. Cory Booker. "This is the number one infrastructure project in the United States of America."

Of course, the event was a historic occasion and a governmental one, not the appropriate place to go overboard with political praise. But then again, New Jersey remains a back-seat player in the national presidential contests, a reliably blue Democratic bastion that rarely becomes a battlefield. Typically, the Garden State usually plays a role as an ATM for both parties. Leaders here have the luxury of holding their fire and waiting until they know when it's safe to come outside and let the matter resolve itself.

In this case, that would mean whether Biden hears the drumbeat of anxious party activists and exits the stage, or holds fast and the party reluctantly agrees to stick with Biden, with his low approval ratings and trailing Trump in poll after poll.

Some of Biden’s strongest support is in South Jersey, where Biden’s close ties to organized labor in the Delaware-South Jersey-Philadelphia region made him a known quantity. That helps explain Suleiman’s defiant support for the embattled Biden.

"Growing up in Atlantic County, I learned that we don't abandon our own. As a family, we stick together and tough it out. That's why I'm reaffirming my support for President Biden,’’ he said.

But for many others now, it's not a question of saving the candidacy of a well-regarded Democrat. It is a question of about saving American democracy.

Charlie Stile is a veteran New Jersey political columnist. For unlimited access to his unique insights into New Jersey’s political power structure and his powerful watchdog work, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: stile@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Joe Biden reelection: Where are NJ Democrats?