Obama pressures Biden to rethink poll run; ‘President considering exit’, say sources

US President Joe Biden is expected to make a major announcement on his re-election bid, with several senior Democratic leaders including former president Barack Obama suggesting that he leave the race following his disastrous debate performance, a failed assassination attempt on his rival Donald Trump, his poor health, and falling poll numbers.

“Several people close to President Biden said on Thursday that they believe he has begun to accept the idea that he may not be able to win in November and may have to drop out of the race, bowing to the growing demands of many anxious members of his party,” The New York Times reported.

Pressure from Obama, Pelosi

Biden, 81, is spending time at his Delaware residence in isolation after he was tested positive for COVID-19. Media reports said that top leaders of the Democratic party, including former president Obama, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, have asked him to leave the presidential race, in the absence of which the party risks losing the White House, the Senate and the House of Representatives.

“People close to top Democrats said Thursday that it now appeared it was a matter of when—not if—Biden bows out of the presidential race. In the past day or so, former President Barack Obama has told friends who have called him that Biden’s path to victory is narrow, according to people familiar with the calls,” The NYT report said.

The Washington Post reported on Thursday (July 18) night that Pelosi has stepped up her behind-the-scenes role in working to persuade the president to bow out of campaign. Obama has said that he has a very slight chance of winning the race.

Kamala Harris prepares to take lead

According to The Hill, Vice President Kamala Harris has started looking for options for her running mate. The three being talked about right now are Senator Mark Kelly, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear and North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper.

Most of the media reports said that Biden's announcement on his re-election bid might come after the conclusion of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

“One of the people close to him warned that the president had not yet made up his mind to leave the race after three weeks of insisting that almost nothing would drive him out. But another said that 'reality is setting in', and that it would not be a surprise if Mr Biden made an announcement soon endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as his replacement,” The NYT reported.

Biden’s orbit grows smaller

Biden's orbit, already small before his debate fumbling, has grown even smaller in recent days. Isolated as he battles a COVID infection at home in Delaware, the president is relying on a few long-time aides as he weighs whether to bow to the mounting pressure to drop out.

Some reports say Biden is “more receptive” to the idea of quitting the presidential race although it is not known whether he will actually drop out.

The ‘Biden for President’ campaign is calling an all-staff meeting for Friday (July 19). It's heading into a critical weekend for the party as Republican Donald Trump wraps up a heady Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and Democrats, racing time, consider the extraordinary possibility of Biden stepping aside for a new presidential nominee before their own convention next month in Chicago.

As anxiety and information swirled, Biden's closest friend in Congress and his campaign co-chair, Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, told The Associated Press: “President Biden deserves the respect to have important family conversations with members of the caucus and colleagues in the House and Senate and Democratic leadership. And not be battling leaks and press statements.”

Campaign officials said Biden was even more committed to staying in the race even as the calls for him to go mounted. But there was also time to reconsider. He has been told the campaign is having trouble raising money, and some Democrats see an opportunity as he is away from the campaign for a few days to encourage his exit.

Biden tested positive for COVID-19 while travelling in Las Vegas and is experiencing “mild symptoms” including “general malaise” from the infection, the White House said.

Backing for Kamala

The president himself, in a radio interview taped just before he tested positive, dismissed the idea it was too late for him to recover politically, telling Univision's Luis Sandoval that many people don't focus on the November election until September.

“All the talk about who's leading and where and how, is kind of, you know — everything so far between Trump and me has been basically even,” he said in an excerpt of the interview released Thursday.

But in Congress, Democratic lawmakers have begun having private conversations about lining up behind Vice President Kamala Harris as an alternative. One lawmaker said Biden's own advisers are unable to reach a unanimous recommendation about what he should do. More in Congress are considering joining the nearly two dozen who have called for Biden to drop out.

“It's clear the issue won't go away,” said Vermont Senator Peter Welch, the sole Senate Democrat who has publicly said Biden should exit the race. Welch said the current state of party angst – with lawmakers panicking and donors revolting – was “not sustainable.”

Private conversations with Biden

Pressed about reports that Biden might be softening to the idea of leaving the race, his deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks said on Thursday: “He is not wavering on anything.” However, influential Democrats atop the party apparatus, including congressional leadership headed by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, are sending signals of strong concern.

Using mountains of data showing Biden's standing could seriously damage the ranks of Democrats in Congress, frank conversations in public and private and now the president's own few days of isolation, many Democrats see an opportunity to encourage a reassessment.

Over the past week, Schumer and Jeffries, both of New York, have spoken privately to the president, candidly laying out the concerns of Democrats on Capitol Hill. Control of the House and Senate is at stake, and leaders are keenly aware that a Republican sweep in November could launch Trump's agenda for years to come.

Separately, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington, spoke with the president last week armed with fresh data. The campaign chief specifically aired the concerns of front-line Democrats seeking election to the House.

‘Time to pass the torch’

Major political donors, particularly in Pelosi's California, have been putting heavy pressure on the president's campaign and members of Congress, according to one Democratic strategist. Schumer has told donors and others to bring their concerns directly to the White House.

Prominent California Rep. Adam Schiff, a close ally of Pelosi, called for Biden to drop his re-election bid, saying Wednesday he believes it's time to “pass the torch.” And Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland used a baseball metaphor to suggest in a recent letter to Biden, “There is no shame in taking a well-deserved bow to the overflowing appreciation of the crowd.” To be sure, many want Biden to stay in the race. And the Democratic National Committee is pushing ahead with plans for a virtual vote to formally make Biden its nominee in the first week of August, ahead of the Democratic National Convention, which begins August 19.

Rep. James Clyburn, a senior Democrat who has been a key Biden ally, wrapped up several days of campaigning for Biden in Nevada and said: “Joe Biden has the knowledge. He's demonstrated that time and time again.” He warned against those who he said “have an agenda." But among Democrats nationwide, nearly two-thirds say Biden should step aside and let his party nominate a different candidate, according to an AP-NORC Centre for Public Affairs Research poll. That sharply undercuts Biden's post-debate claim that “average Democrats” are still with him even if some “big names” are turning on him.

Biden defiant

The Biden campaign pointed to what it called “extensive support” for his re-election from members of Congress in key swing states, as well as from the Congressional Black and Hispanic caucuses.

Other Democrats in Congress have shown less support, including when Biden's top aides visited Democratic senators last week in a private lunch. When Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania asked for a show of hands on who was with the president, only his own and a few others including top Biden ally Coons of Delaware went up, according to one of the people granted anonymity to discuss the matter.

(With inputs from agencies)