Vice President Harris and governors dish on immigration, abortion, special counsel — but not on dumping Biden

Washington — A weekend meeting hosted by Vice President Kamala Harris with battleground state governors included no conversation about removing President Biden from the Democratic Party ticket, but plenty of talk about how to discredit special counsel Robert Hur's report and campaign more aggressively on issues like abortion rights and immigration. 

The first-of-its-kind gathering, at least for this administration, unfolded over three hours around the dining room table at the Vice President's Residence in Northwest Washington, where she served coffee and lights snacks, and later, cocktails, according to multiple people familiar with the meeting. She shared forthcoming campaign plans and told the governors she considers them critical to winning their battleground states and the key constituencies they represent.

It was described by people familiar with the exchange as an intimate listening session, where governors who have overseen their large states during the COVID-19 pandemic, won tough reelection fights and could one day face off against the vice president in future bids for the White House unloaded their concerns to Harris and close aides.