Disney heiress, others donors set to ’withhold funding’ as Joe Biden forges ahead with US Presidential campaign

US President Joe Biden forged ahead with his re-election bid this week as several key donors threatened to withhold funding. The developments came even as top Democrats held an emergency meeting to discuss their Presidential candidate and European nations sought to safeguard the NATO alliance. The octogenarian lawmaker returned to the campaign trail under an increasingly unforgiving spotlight on Sunday.

“I intend to stop any contributions to the party unless and until they replace Biden at the top of the ticket. This is realism, not disrespect. Biden is a good man and has served his country admirably, but the stakes are far too high. If Biden does not step down the Democrats will lose. Of that I am absolutely certain. The consequences for the loss will be genuinely dire,” Abigail Disney told CNBC.

Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings echoed the sentiment, telling The New York Times that Biden needed to step aside and allow a “vigorous Democratic leader” to beat Donald Trump. The business leader and his wife have donated more than $20 million to the party in recent years.

“I deeply respect Joe Biden’s lifetime of service to our country. But in this critical time, in this vital election, stepping aside is the right and honorable thing for President Biden to do,” added Los Angeles developer Rick Caruso.

The former LA mayoral candidate — a Democratic donor who co-hosted a multimillion-dollar fundraiser for Biden in December — said in an interview on Saturday that he would pause efforts until he could get more clarity on the situation.

Five Democratic lawmakers have so far called on Biden to drop out as the drumbeat of dissent slowly rises. House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries was slated to lead a virtual meeting of senior Democrat representatives on Sunday to discuss the best way forward. According to reports, Democrat Senator Mark Warner is also working to convene a similar forum in the upper chamber.