WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden says Democrats should give up “restrictive” caucuses and move to champion diversity in the order of their presidential primary calendar.
His recommendation deals a major blow to Iowa’s decadeslong status as the state that leads off the process.
In a letter to the rule-making arm of the Democratic National Committee, Biden does not mention specific states he’d like to see go first.
But he’s told Democrats he would like to see South Carolina moved to the front of the calendar, according to three people familiar with his recommendation who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. He recommends that Michigan and Georgia move into the first five states.