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In a pre-recorded conversation set to air tonight on Thursday Night Talk on KZZH, North Coast Congressmember Jared Huffman said he believes Vice President Kamala Harris would be Democrats' best presidential candidate in November.

While Huffman stops short of saying President Joe Biden should bow out of the race, he makes clear his belief that Democrats have a "very serious problem," describing Biden's polling as "terrible" and saying it's "gotten a lot worse since the disastrous debate performance."

"My hope is that in a matter of a few short days we should be able to resolve the issue of who's at the top of the ticket, or at least whether President Biden is at the top of the ticket," Huffman says.

Huffman says he sees Harris as the most likely replacement candidate, should Biden step aside.

"I think there's a path to Democrats winning," he says. "I personally think the best path would be with Kamala Harris at the top of the ticket, and then someone like maybe Gov. [Josh] Shapiro from Pennsylvania."

Host Talvi Fried then refers to Huffman's comments as an "unofficial endorsement."

"You can make it official," he responds.

The comments are notably more strident than those Huffman shared in an interview with the North Coast Journal last week. But they seem to evidence a growing concern of Huffman's that's become increasingly visible through social media posts, media comments and official actions.

Huffman drafted and began circulating a letter among House Democrats pushing back against the Democratic National Committee's reported plans to move quickly to confirm Biden as the party's presidential nominee by the end of the month, calling on the party to delay confirmation until its delegates meet in person at the convention beginning Aug. 19. But Huffman then scrapped the letter, after party leaders pledged not to hold a confirmation vote before August.

"We achieved what we wanted here," Huffman told Axios in a phone interview.

Huffman also shared a social media post Wednesday night from former Congressmember Aaron Regunberg.

"Team Biden, hear me out: Make the announcement tomorrow night," the post states, referring to a hypothetical announcement regarding Biden bowing out of the race. "You'd steal every single headline from Trump's nomination speech. He'd be so fucking mad. Most badass move from any politician ever, and would instantly get us all back loving Dark Brandon. It's the perfect play."

Earlier today, he also shared a post touting Harris' speech today in North Carolina, saying she "knock(ed) it out of the park with a show stopping speech" and calling her a "born leader."

Tune in to tonight's edition of Thursday Night Talk live on KZZH (96.7 on your FM dial or streamable through its website here). A recording of the show will also be viewable on Access Humboldt's YouTube page and on Channel 12 locally.