Biden authorizes $15 million transfer from DNC to House and Senate campaign committees

By Jeff Zeleny, Chief National Affairs Correspondent

President Joe Biden told party leaders at the White House on Wednesday that he has approved a transfer of $15 million from the Democratic National Committee to help boost the efforts of the party’s House and Senate campaign committees, officials said.

The move comes as Democrats fight to protect their narrow majorities in the House and Senate. The President told Senate and House leaders of his commitment to the November midterm elections during meetings where he sat down for separate discussions with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, along with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan, chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

“Speaker Nancy Pelosi and I had a productive meeting with the President during which he made one thing clear — he is all in on the midterms, and that starts with a significant investment in House races,” Maloney said in a statement to CNN. “Together, we can tout House Democrats’ incredible record of accomplishments over the past year — from bouncing back from the pandemic to creating millions of jobs and rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure by passing the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal. If we stand together in pursuit of victory, we will hold the House in 2022.”

A senior Democratic Party official confirmed the $15 million transfer, which was first reported by NBC News.

The Democratic National Committee called it the largest-ever midterm cash transfer, with $7.5 million each going to the two campaign committees

“President Biden understands the stakes of this midterm election — if Republicans take the Senate, they’ll push the agenda of the ultra-wealthy and big corporations at the expense of working Americans,” Peters said in a statement. “I’m thankful for his strong support of Senate Democrats and look forward to continuing our work together to protect and expand our Senate majority.”

The $15 million is in addition to previous investments in targeted battleground states, on voter protection efforts, data building and state party building.

It’s part of a coordinated campaign the DNC is building across eight states, where some of the top House and Senate races are playing out.

The meetings with Biden and party officials come after Democrats voiced criticism of the White House political operation and its outreach to House and Senate leaders.

CNN reported last month that three dozen exclusive interviews had revealed that top Democratic politicians, campaign officials and operatives were saying the White House political operation was heading into the midterms unprepared and unresponsive even to basic requests for help or information.

Biden advisers told CNN at the time that the President talks politics with Pelosi and Schumer, but people familiar with both leaders say any campaign talk has been brief, and Democratic leaders have significant concerns with the White House’s approach to getting the President to break through with voters. It’s not just that Biden’s approval ratings have tumbled. Those in charge of keeping Democrats in power doubt that Biden’s team understands how to improve his political fate — and with it, theirs.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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CNN’s Isaac Dovere contributed to this report.