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Former president Barack Obama and ex-House speaker Nancy Pelosi have reportedly privately expressed their concerns about President Joe Biden’s future as he continues to struggle to convince the American electorate and his fellow Democrats that he remains the right person to top the ticket and take on Donald Trump in November.
Since his disastrous presidential debate performance against Trump last month, Biden has faced panicked calls to quit the race for the White House to make way for a younger successor.
Speaking at an hour-long press conference in Washington DC on Thursday, the president again vowed to “finish this job” and defeat Trump for a second time.
“We have never been here before,” he said, when pressed on the threat the Republican poses.
“That is why I didn’t hand off to another generation – I have to finish this job because there’s so much at stake.”
However, Biden badly undermined his case with a fresh gaffe in which he referred to his own deputy Kamala Harris as “vice president Trump”.
That was his second unforced error of the day after he earlier introduced Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky as “President Putin” at a Nato event.
Key Points
- Pro-Biden super PAC donor withholding approximately $90m, report says
- Obama and Pelosi ‘hold talks on Joe Biden’s future’
- Biden confuses Harris with Trump in latest gaffe
- Zelensky thanks Biden for ‘leadership’ at Nato summit despite Putin blunder
- Trump mocks latest Biden slip-up on Truth Social
- The 18 House and Senate Democrats who say the president needs to step aside
How would replacing Biden actually work?
Eric Garcia and Gustaf Kilander write:
Even some of Biden’s aides are reportedly starting to think it may be time to go, and have started to brainstorm ways to convince him to do so. The campaign is also reported to be conducting head-to-head polling between Trump and Harris.
This all comes after his disastrous debate on June 27 when Biden appeared confused and frail, made several gaffes and losing his train of thought.
Insiders have previously told The Independent that they believe there is “no question” Harris would receive the baton if Biden would reverse course and choose not to run in November. However, to date, Harris has remained steadfastly loyal to Biden’s bid.
But how would replacing Biden actually work?
Here’s the process as calls grow for him to pass the torch:
How would replacing Biden as the Democratic nominee actually work?
The clock is ticking for Biden to step aside as the party’s nominee will be officially chosen in just over a month’s time at the Democratic National Convention
Oliver O'Connell12 July 2024 18:00 1720802707No Biden endorsement from Jeffries, report says
CNN’s Jeff Zeleny reports that at the meeting between Joe Biden and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, no endorsement of the president was offered by the top House Democrat.
Citing a source familiar with last night’s White House meeting, Zeleny reports that Jeffries “bluntly” shared the views of the caucus (as he stated in his ‘Dear Colleague’ letter this morning) but intentionally did not offer an endorsement or say publicly that the decision to step aside from the campaign is Biden’s to make.
While it is uncertain if Biden directly asked Jeffries for his tacit endorsement, a person familiar with the matter said, Jeffries did not extend it at the meeting and no mention was made in today’s letter.
Oliver O'Connell12 July 2024 17:37 1720801807In the room: ‘I was at Biden’s ‘big boy’ press conference. It was stage-managed to a fault'
The Independent’s White House correspondent Andrew Feinberg writes:
Just hours before the ‘big boy’ press conference that was intended to reassure us all, President Joe Biden made a catastrophic mistake. Inviting Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, to the stage at a NATO event, he accidentally referred to him as “President Putin”. It was a nail-biting moment and groans could be heard in the room as it happened. Biden’s seconds-later excuse — that he was just “so focused about beating Putin” while he was talking that he slipped up — was hardly reassuring.
Hours later, The Independent joined a small number of reporters allowed to attend the hour-long press conference on Thursday night.
Continue reading...
I was at Biden’s ‘big boy’ press conference. It was stage-managed to a fault
Under-the-breath groans were heard when Biden accidentally referred to Kamala Harris as ‘Vice President Trump’
Oliver O'Connell12 July 2024 17:30 1720801207Watch: Former Biden chief of staff explains president’s appeal in swing states
Ron Klain, former White House chief of staffI think the man from Scranton is the right person to take on the man from Mar-a-Lago. This is the contrast we want in this race, that’s going to narrow to Biden’s benefit, and in the end, he’ll win those states as he did in 2020.
Pro-Biden super PAC donor withholding approximately $90m, report says
The New York Times reports that major Democratic donors have told the largest pro-Biden super PAC, Future Forward, that pledges worth roughly $90m are on hold if Joe Biden remains at the top of the ticket. The outlet cites two people briefed on the conversations.
Per the Times:
The frozen contributions include multiple eight-figure commitments, according to the two people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the situation. The decision to withhold such enormous sums of money is one of the most concrete examples of the fallout from Mr. Biden’s poor debate performance at the end of June.
Future Forward declined to comment on any conversations with donors or the amounts of any pledged money being withheld. A Future Forward adviser would say only that the group expected contributors who had paused donations to return once the current uncertainty about the ticket was resolved.
Separately, one donor to the group described being approached multiple times by Future Forward since the debate for a contribution, but said he and his friends had been “holding off.”
No individual donors have been named.
Oliver O'Connell12 July 2024 17:13 1720800007Biden pushes his ‘blue wall’ sprint with a Michigan trip as he makes the case for his candidacy
Four years ago, candidate Joe Biden stood before supporters at a Detroit high school, flanked by Kamala Harris and other rising Democratic stars, and called himself a bridge to the next generation of leaders.
Biden, now a president seeking reelection, returns to that same high school on Friday with many in his party now pleading for him to fulfill that very promise and step aside. But Biden remains defiant that he’ll remain in the race despite a disastrous debate performance that triggered a wave of calls for him to end his candidacy.
During a news conference on Thursday, when asked why he no longer considered himself a “bridge” to the next generation of leaders, Biden responded that “what changed was the gravity of the situation I inherited in terms of the economy, foreign policy, and domestic division.”
“We’ve never been here before,” Biden continued. “And that’s the other reason why I didn’t, you say, hand off to another generation. I gotta finish the job.”
In the two weeks since his debate debacle, Biden and his team have been on a relentless sprint to convince fretting lawmakers, nervous donors and a skeptical electorate that at the age of 81, he is still capable of being president. But a spate of travel to battleground states, interviews with journalists and a rare solo news conference have done little to tamp down the angst within the party about Biden’s candidacy and his prospects against Donald Trump in November.
Oliver O'Connell12 July 2024 17:00 1720799107‘We can’t risk a Trump presidency’: Ashley Judd pens deeply personal op-ed calling on Biden to step aside
Actress Ashley Judd has joined the strengthening chorus of voices — which now includes several celebrities — calling on President Joe Biden to step aside.
In a deeply personal and heartfelt op-ed for USA Today, she wrote that some of her “beloved chosen and biological family ... feverishly love Donald Trump,” but she can’t imagine the former president bringing his “cruelty” to the White House for a second term.
She added that during the disastrous June 27 debate — where Biden appeared confused and frail, losing his train of thought and making several gaffes— the president was unable to counter Trump as he “gushed a firehose of galling lies.”
“I now ask President Joe Biden to step aside,” she wrote.
Gustaf Kilander has the story.
Ashley Judd pens op-ed calling on Biden to step aside: ‘Can’t risk Trump presidency’
Actress says president was unable to counter Trump at debate as he ‘gushed a firehose of galling lies’
Oliver O'Connell12 July 2024 16:30 1720797331New poll: Biden gains point since debate
The race for the White House remains statistically tied according to a new national NPR/PBS Newshour/Marist poll conducted on Tuesday and Wednesday, the first since President Joe Biden’s dismal debate performance on June 27.
Indeed, the president actually gained a point over the preceding month’s survey and now leads Donald Trump 50 per cent to 48 per cent in a head-to-head matchup.
When third-party options are included, Trump gains a slight advantage and leads Biden 43 per cent to 42 per cent.
The margin of error is +/- 3.1 per cent.
However, nearly two-thirds of the more than 1,309 respondents said they believe Biden lacks the mental fitness to be president. That includes almost 4 in 10 Democrats.
But the survey also found that more than two-thirds (68 per cent) of people said it’s more concerning to have a president who doesn’t tell the truth than one who might be too old to serve.
A majority said Biden has the character to be president (52 per cent), while a majority also said Trump does not (56 per cent).
Nevertheless, almost 6 in 10 respondents believe Trump will win in November including a quarter of Democrats.
Biden alternatives in the Democratic Party all poll about the same as the president against Trump according to the poll [Kamala Harris 50-49 Trump; Gretchen Whitmer 49-49 Trump; Gavin Newsom 50-48 Trump].
While there is no clear alternative candidate for the party, those who are calling for Biden to step aside would nevertheless argue that a younger nominee could campaign more vigorously and make a more coherent case.
Oliver O'Connell12 July 2024 16:15 Newer1 / 7OlderDisclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.
