President Biden’s embattled reelection campaign took a fresh hit on Thursday as new reports said former President Barak Obama has told fellow Democrats that Biden should consider dropping out of the race.
As Biden battles a mild case of COVID-19, Obama reportedly became the latest Democratic titan to question whether the 81-year-old incumbent should end his campaign for reelection against former President Donald Trump amid widespread concerns over his age and fitness.
Although Obama has not spoken directly to Biden in recent days, he has conveyed to Democratic allies that Biden needs to seriously consider the viability of his campaign,
He has stressed that Biden is the only one who can make the decision to step down, presumably in coming days as the Democratic National Convention is looming in just over three weeks.
A new report in the New York Times said “reality is setting in” for Biden and he might soon drop out and endorse Vice President Kamala Harris to pick up the baton against Trump.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have all told Biden he should strongly consider leaving the race, reports say.
All of them confronted Biden with polls showing he is in great peril of losing to Trump, and he could drag Democrats down to lose both houses of Congress as well.
None of the senior Democrats have publicly pushed Biden to drop out. But tellingly, they haven’t denied published reports detailing their closed-door pleas for Biden to step aside.
Polls say a big majority of Democratic voters want Biden to drop out of the race after concerns about his fitness erupted over his shaky performance in last month’s debate with Trump.
Some reports from Biden’s inner circle suggest that aides believe his campaign is doomed and it is only a matter of time before he drops out, perhaps as soon as this weekend.
Amid the political tumult, Biden was doing well and working in isolation at his Delaware beach home after being diagnosed with COVID-19 a day earlier.
Biden’s vital signs were normal, he did not have a fever and he was suffering only mild symptoms caused by the respiratory virus, White House physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor said in a brief letter to press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
“The president continues to suffer mild upper respiratory symptoms,” O’Connor wrote. “He will continue to conduct the business of the American people.”
Biden was forced to cut short a campaign trip to Las Vegas when he felt ill and tested positive for the virus.
Since the debate debacle, Biden has conducted a handful of sit-down interviews with top journalists and addressed several campaign rallies.
He has managed to avoid any further disasters but his still-uneven performances have not inspired widespread confidence either.
On Wednesday, Rep. Adam Schiff, a close ally of Pelosi, became the latest heavyweight to ask Biden to head for the exits.
A series of seemingly coordinated leaks about the pressure on Biden by Schumer, Jeffries and Pelosi worsened his political standing.
The COVID diagnosis came at the worst possible moment for Biden when he had hoped to be vigorously campaigning to counter Trump’s triumphant nomination at the Republican National Convention.
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