Joe Biden may have thought that he did okay during his "biig boy" press conference, but in reality, he's done nothing to assuage concerns about his age and cognitive health. In addition to calling Kamala Harris "Vice President Trump" and not knowing that he is the commander-in-chief, there were plenty of concerns with his performance that the forces trying to get him to step aside have simply not been moved to consider.
The two people behind this effort are Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi.
"Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi have spoken privately about Joe Biden and the future of his 2024 campaign," reports CNN. "Both the former president and ex-speaker expressed concerns about how much harder they think it’s become for the president to beat Donald Trump. Neither is quite sure what to do."
Make no mistake about it, the press conference did nothing to change that.
Democrats are desperate for the dispiriting infighting to end so they can get back to trying to beat the former president. And they’re begging either Obama or Pelosi to help them get there, aware that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer doesn’t have the trust of Biden and that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries doesn’t have the depth of relationship to deliver the message.
CNN spoke with more than a dozen members of Congress, operatives and multiple people in touch with both Obama and Pelosi, many of whom say that the end for Biden’s candidacy feels clear and at this point it’s just a matter of how it plays out, even after Thursday night’s news conference.
Democratic Party leaders reportedly want Obama and Pelosi to tell Joe Biden to drop out. Pelosi's colleagues hope she can "bring an end to the turmoil that has engulfed Democrats for the last two weeks." Many think this resolution could come if Pelosi advises Biden to withdraw. Although Pelosi has spoken to Biden since the debate, she hasn't confirmed his decision to remain in the race as final and declined further comment through an aide.
Related: Joe Biden’s ‘Big Boy’ Press Conference Is a Disaster for the Democrats
Meanwhile, Obama's two-week public silence has left leading Democrats feeling abandoned, despite a coordinated post-debate statement on X/Twitter comparing Biden's debate performance to Obama's own rough debate in 2012. However, the report notes that "Obama’s deepening skepticism about his friend’s ability to win reelection is one of the worst kept secrets in Washington."
Yet, according to sources, Pelosi and Obama are far more involved than is widely known in the effort to get Biden to drop out.
“They are watching and waiting for President Biden to reach a decision on his own,” a longtime Democrat close to Obama, Pelosi, and Biden told CNN.
While not contesting that the former speaker and Obama have spoken about Biden, a Pelosi spokesperson told CNN after this article first published, “There is no member of Congress who would have any knowledge of any conversation that Speaker Pelosi would have with President Obama. Anyone who says they do is not speaking the truth.”
Obama has been fielding more calls than he’s making, people who have spoken to him say. When he does talk to anxious Democratic donors and officials, he’s been listening more than talking, carefully avoiding taking positions that he assumes would quickly leak.
That was also Obama’s approach to the call he had with Biden after the debate, which the current president has suggested to others included the former president being supportive of him riding out the turmoil. According to others familiar with the call, though, Obama stuck to his posture of being a “sounding board and private counselor.” He prodded. He played devil’s advocate. But he did not take a position.
In conversations with fellow Democrats, Obama has reportedly dismissed the idea that he could influence Biden's decisions due to their complicated relationship. The report suggests that their relationship isn’t nearly as chummy as it is often portrayed. It’s been obvious for some time now that Biden resents the way Obama discouraged him from running for president in 2016, and that would likely complicate any outward attempt by Obama to get Biden to drop out.
“Biden would say, ‘Well, Mr. President, you already used that chip in 2015 and it got us Donald Trump,’” a longtime 2020 campaign aide speculated. “I think it would harden him more.”
On top of that, Obama is wary of providing Trump with new material by intervening in a more public fashion.
Frankly, whether Obama and Pelosi are working behind the scenes or in a more public fashion doesn't matter. There are less than four months to go before the election, and the movement to replace the presumptive Democratic Party nominee and incumbent president is very real and likely to tear the party apart.
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