It’s not too late, Biden backers say
Some Obama bundlers waiting on VP’s decision
Should he run, donors waiting “on the sidelines.”
Despite Democrat Hillary Clinton’s early dominance in campaign fundraising, Vice President Biden may still have an opening if he chooses to seek the presidency, campaign donors who want a Biden candidacy said.
Boston-area resident Erik Ramanathan, an Obama fundraiser eager to see Biden enter the race, insists Clinton has not locked up the majority of the president’s finance team. “I think there are a lot of Obama bundlers who are effectively on the sidelines,” he said.
Ramanathan called Biden a “spectacular vice president” who is valued in part for his 36 years of experience in the Senate and his ability to work with Republicans. “People see him as the fixer President Obama sends in when he’s facing an intractable problem,” Ramanathan said, citing Biden’s role in a 2011 budget deal with congressional leaders and his current task of helping sell the Iran nuclear deal.
“I don’t think any of the other (Democrat) candidates brings that bridging ability,” Ramanathan said.
Another Obama bundler, Chicago attorney Nigel Telman, said he’s biding his time. The controversy swirling around Clinton’s use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of State raises “transparency” issues, he said. (Clinton is expected to face questions about those emails and more during an appearance Thursday before a House committee investigating the Benghazi terrorist attacks.)
“My wife is all Hillary, all the time,” Telman said. “But I’m holding off a bit. I’m intrigued by Biden.”
Telman said the vice president, known for his off-the-cuff speaking style, “brings the same kind of authenticity” that’s drawing voters to GOP presidential frontrunner Donald Trump but “without the Trump craziness.”
Biden, who twice before has sought the presidency, faces steep challenges should he run.
Clinton’s performance on the debate stage “just rejuvenated everyone who is a Hillary supporter,” said Lainy Lebow- Sachs, a Baltimore non-profit executive and well-known figure in Maryland’s Democratic fundraising circles. Biden should not “upset the apple cart for Democrats,” she said. “He’s lost twice, and it would be a shame for him to come in and lose a third time.”
“I’m intrigued by Biden.”
Nigel Telman,
Obama bundler