Joe Biden is reportedly in “denial” that he should withdraw from the presidential race after his poor performance in last week’s debates, as some of his campaign donors grow increasingly concerned about his mental health.
The 81-year-old commander in chief has insisted he will stay in the race, while members of his own party call for him to step aside and hand the reins to a younger Democrat.
But even those who publicly advocate for Biden have privately admitted there is no path forward with him at the top of the ticket, according to the Washington Post.
A donor adviser now estimates that “for every 10 people who think he should leave, one thinks he should stay.”
Others argue that even Biden knows on some level that he is doomed.
Democratic insiders have suggested that President Joe Biden is in ‘denial’ about his chances of winning back the White House
“I think he’s focused on his recovery,” a person who spoke to the president on July 4 told the Post.
“But I personally think he’s still in the denial stage of his grieving process.”
Five days after the debate, the president gave just 32 minutes of public comments, all of which were scripted.
At one such appearance, at a $100 million mansion in East Hampton, donors were stunned when Biden described a French cemetery in Normandy as “Italian,” insiders said.
He then spoke for only six minutes and then left without answering any questions.
When Biden subsequently appeared at the New Jersey governor’s private mansion, he spoke so softly that an audience of 50 people had to crane their necks to hear him speak through a teleprompter, according to sources.
The 81-year-old commander in chief has faced calls to withdraw from the race since his poor performance during the June 27 debate.
Things began to change on Monday, according to people familiar with the internal discussions within the Democratic Party, as members of his own party began calling for him to withdraw from the race.
“Everybody lost confidence on Monday,” an unnamed Democratic congressman told the Post.
“I started hearing from donors, members, everybody on Monday. It just got worse.”
According to the Post, some independent Democratic strategists have even made plans to promote Vice President Kamala Harris.
But Biden’s campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez has been sending text messages to lawmakers and administration officials, according to the Associated Press, encouraging them not to make public their concerns about the president’s eligibility.
The campaign also reported that more local fundraising took place this past week than at the start of any other campaign month.
Still, Virginia Sen. Mark Warner is leading Democrats in the upper chamber to oust Biden as the presidential nominee in favor of a younger candidate.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is also bringing together leading Democrats to discuss the issue in a Zoom meeting on Sunday, Politico report.
Biden has insisted he will remain in the 2024 presidential election
As of Saturday, five incumbent Democrats had called for Biden to withdraw from the race. Thirteen other members of Congress and governors also expressed concerns, according to a Washington Post tally.
Minnesota Rep. Angie Craig, who is fighting to keep her seat in the crucial state, was the latest to speak out, following his one-on-one interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos on Friday.
“There is only a short period of time left in which we can ensure that we have a candidate who is best equipped to argue the case and win,” she told the Post.
“Given what I saw and heard from the President last week at the debate in Atlanta, and given the lack of a strong response from the President himself after that debate, I do not believe the President can campaign effectively and win against Donald Trump.”
Another Democratic lawmaker who previously backed Biden also told NBC that they will break their silence on Biden’s fate “soon.”
“It made me sad,” the politician said of the interview. “Completely disconnected from reality and isolated from [the] truth.’
First Lady Jill Biden is believed to be the driving force behind her husband staying in the race, as some independent Democratic strategists have begun to back Vice President Kamala Harris
First Lady Jill Biden is believed to have encouraged her husband to stay in the race.
She called Vogue magazine and stressed that he will continue to fight for the White House.
‘[We] will not let those 90 minutes define the four years [Joe’s] president. We will continue to fight,” Jill, 73, told the magazine in an interview published later this week.
One source also claimed that the First Lady ‘… [the] ‘ultimate influence’ on her husband.
‘If she decides that a change of course is necessary, then a change of course will happen.
“The decision-makers are two people: the president and his wife,” the source added.
“Anyone who does not understand how deeply personal and familial this decision is has no knowledge of the situation.”