For Congressional Black Caucus Members, Holding Out For Biden Was About Loyalty

In the three weeks after his ill-fated debate, one group held conspicuously firm in their demand that President Joe Biden remain atop the Democrats’ ticket in November: the 59-member Congressional Black Caucus.

Even if that steadfastness meant Vice President Kamala Harris, a former CBC member herself, would remain as the White House No. 2 and have to wait another four years for a shot at the top spot, the group was notable in that its first member to say Biden should drop out, Rep. Marc Veasey (D-Texas), didn’t make his position known until Friday, two days before Biden announced his decision to leave the race.

Several CBC members told HuffPost the reluctance to cast Biden adrift stemmed from two main factors: loyalty to a president they said had done right by them in his time in the White House and fear a free-for-all would erupt within the party if he was forced out.

“People did not want to judge Biden based on a 90-minute debate performance, because he has a history. His history has been very positive toward the Black agenda, and he has delivered,” said Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.).

“He was there for us, and we felt an obligation to be there for him,” he said.

“He has made a difference for us in terms of showing us that he really did mean it when he said he was going to be a president for all people,” said Rep. Al Green (D-Texas).

Green said he would be “eternally grateful” to Biden, ticking off Biden choosing Harris as his vice president, Ketanji Brown Jackson for the U.S. Supreme Court and Linda Thomas-Greenfield to be the ambassador to the United Nations as among his big accomplishments.

Black voters have been among Biden’s strongest supporters since the 2020 primaries, and he owed a particular debt to one the