VP Kamala Harris and Democratic donors discuss 'urgent, emerging needs' in the race, with Biden campaign in crisis

• Vice President Kamala Harris joined a call with major Democratic donors, four sources tell NBC News, to discuss "urgent, emerging needs" as more lawmakers call on President Joe Biden to drop his bid for reelection.
• A Biden campaign official told NBC News that the president's advisers asked Harris to do the call.
• Democratic megadonor Reid Hoffman, the billionaire LinkedIn co-founder, planned to join the call.

Vice President Kamala Harris joined a call with major Democratic donors Friday afternoon to discuss what the hosts called "urgent, emerging needs." The call came as more Democratic lawmakers publicly call on President Joe Biden to drop his bid for reelection.

A Biden campaign official told NBC News that the president's advisers asked Harris to do the call, which Democratic megadonor Reid Hoffman, the billionaire LinkedIn co-founder, planned to join.

"We continue to find ourselves in a rapidly evolving environment," an invitation for the call said. "With the stakes as high as they are this cycle, we have to remain focused on the critical work that needs to be done to protect our democracy."

The call began with a presentation from campaign field organizers, a source with direct knowledge of the call told NBC. The organizers repeated claims first made in a Biden campaign memo earlier on Friday, saying that voters still wanted Biden, even if donors and Democrats in office do not.

Harris then joined the call, which lasted approximately 40 minutes.

"I will start by sharing something with all of you, something I believe in my heart of hearts. It is something I feel strongly you should all hear and should take with you when you leave, and tell your friends too," the vice president said, according to a second source who was