Dems are sweating over Biden's campaign. Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries aren't telling them what to do.

WASHINGTON – As a growing number of lawmakers call for Joe Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race, Democratic leaders in the House and Senate have given little guidance to their flock on how to talk about the high-stakes, ever-changing situation.

It's a signal that the divisions in the party aren't going anywhere – and the best path ahead remains fluid – even for the leaders that have long had a close relationship with the 81-year-old Biden and would be responsible for executing his vision in a second term.

Both Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., have a mess on their hands. They preside over members who are deeply afraid of a second term for former President Donald Trump but disagree over the appropriate path forward for the top of their own ticket after Biden's rocky debate performance threw the party into a tailspin.

Jim Manley, who previously served as as spokesperson for former Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., told USA TODAY that it's likely that each leader is waiting for more unanimity among members before they lay out a strategy on how to find a new nominee, if that's what the majority decides is necessary.

"What's going on is that (Schumer) and Jeffries are waiting to formulate some sort of plan," Manley said. "Despite the fact that there's rising concern within both caucuses, you need a plan to extricate yourself from this and they don't have one yet."

So far, only one senator and more than a dozen House members have been willing to publicly call for the incumbent Democratic president to step aside, though far more have said they have deep concerns with his candidacy publicly and privately.

Both Schumer and Jeffries have remained in listening mode as their members meet to discuss their options, according to aides and lawmakers in both chambers.

Schumer, who worked alongside Biden in the Senate for years, retains control of the upper chamber by an incredibly narrow margin . Even before the crisis of recent weeks, Democrats had an uphill battle to hold on to the majority. While the senators facing the toughest races this fall have made clear their 2024 strategy is not dependent on the top of the ticket, an additional drag on Democratic campaigns wouldn't help.

Publicly, Schumer will respond to any and all Biden-related questions with only three words: "I'm with Joe."

"He's our caucus leader, he's listening to his members," Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., said of Schumer. Coons has been one of Biden's most vocal allies in the upper chamber. Asked whether he has advocated for the president behind closed doors, Coons said simply that "he is being constructive."

At a lunch among Senate Democrats on Tuesday, Schumer facilitated the discussion but did not offer guidance on how to talk about Biden's faltering debate performance – with voters, reporters or others.

Schumer also invited senior Biden campaign staff to brief senators on Thursday , during which they were "asked not to say anything" about the conversation, per Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J.

Axios reported Wednesday that Schumer has been telling donors privately that he is open to another candidate at the top of the ticket, which Schumer's team denies.

"As I have made clear repeatedly publicly and privately, I support President Biden and remain committed to ensuring Donald Trump is defeated in November," Schumer said in a statement following the report.

Across the Capitol, Jeffries has been working to hear from each House Democrat as well as smaller factions in his caucus, calling the conversations "candid, cleareyed and comprehensive."

“As long as those conversations are ongoing, I’m going to respect the sanctity of those conversations until we conclude that process,” Jeffries added.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" on Wednesday that " time is running short " for Biden to make a decision on whether he plans to run – despite the fact that Biden made his decision clear in a letter to Congressional Democrats on Monday saying he is "firmly committed to staying in this race."

Behind the scenes, the former House leader has been speaking with Democratic lawmakers shaken by Biden's inability to finish thoughts and sentences during last month's debate. In those discussions, Pelosi has acknowledged to Democrats that their concerns about Biden have merit, according to four House Democrats with knowledge of the meetings.

The House, too, has multiple vulnerable members facing tough races back home who fear that Biden’s presence on the ticket could hurt their chances of winning reelection. Pelosi has offered similar guidance as she did when she was speaker: Do what they think is best for their district. Republicans currently have a razor-thin majority in the House, and a handful of districts could make the difference this fall as the GOP and Democrats battle for control.

Without direct guidance from leadership, several House Democrats with concerns about Biden have declined to go public with them. Some are sitting on statements calling on the president to withdraw, according to another House Democrat who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss their conversations with colleagues.

Those lawmakers however, some at the request of Pelosi, are withholding their statements until Biden’s high-stakes solo press conference on Thursday evening at the NATO summit in the nation’s capital.

Democrats say it'll matter if and when the leaders speak up because so many rank-and-file members are otherwise conflicted about publicly undermining their party's leader, the sitting president of the United States.

"I think Schumer and Jeffries weighing in on this would have a great deal of weight," Henry Waxman, a former House Democrat who served for 40 years in Congress, told USA TODAY on Sunday . "(Biden) has relied on both of them. He's relying on their wisdom and experience and he ought to take what they say very seriously."

Jeffries has told Democratic members he will bring back their concerns to Biden, according to a sixth House Democrat who spoke on the condition of anonymity to speak about internal private meetings, but the House minority leader said Thursday he has yet to schedule a call with Biden.

Democrats say they're OK with their leaders' relative silence. Hours before he went public with a statement calling on Biden to withdraw from the race, Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Ill., said that Jeffries' hands off approach has been "empowering to folks but also empowering to the caucus by listening to everybody."

In lieu of a nudge in this direction or that direction from leaders, Democratic support for the president on Capitol Hill has slowly begun to falter. Over the past few days, some Democrats have overtly said the president should step aside from the election.

On Wednesday, Reps. Pat Ryan, D-N.Y., and Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., both said in statements Biden should withdraw, and Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post calling for the same. On Thursday, Rep. Hillary Scholten, D-Mich., and Schneider followed suit. Others appear to be trying to subtly hint at the president to get out.

Despite the president and his campaign’s repeated vows to stay in the race, several Democrats in both chambers have said they would support whatever decision Biden makes, as if that is not yet final.

“I think he’s going to make a decision," Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., a former House majority leader, told reporters Thursday. "I think he’s still working on that, and we’ll see."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Dems are sweating over Biden's campaign. Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries aren't telling them what to do.