Report: Obama pressures Biden through surrogates to reconsider staying in the presidential race

Former President Barack Obama is using a behind-the-scenes approach to nudge President Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 race, according to media reports.

Obama and Biden have talked only once since Biden’s poor performance at the presidential debate on June 27. In conversation with others, Obama has highlighted that Biden’s path to victory has diminished and that Biden is struggling against Trump in polls, while Democratic donors are closing their wallets, as The Washington Post reported.

Wealthy donors placed approximately $90 million in donations on hold pending Biden’s withdrawal from the race.

Obama said he is concerned about “protecting Biden and his legacy, and has pushed back against the idea that he alone can influence Biden’s decision-making process,” the report said, adding he is engaged with anxious Democrats about the future of the Biden campaign.

Obama and Biden share a longtime friendship; Biden was his running mate and vice president. After leading his party from 2008 until 2016, Obama sees himself as a sounding board for Biden, the report said.

The Biden-Harris campaign insisted midday on Thursday that they are not exploring other scenarios where Biden isn’t “at the top of the ticket,” adding, “he is and will be the Democratic nominee.”

But The New York Times and other media outlets were reporting Thursday late afternoon that sources close to Biden say 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.”

Who else is sounding the alarm about President Joe Biden’s age?

High level congressional Democrats have also raised concerns with Biden. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have “told Biden his continued candidacy imperils the Democratic Party’s ability to control either chamber of Congress next year” in a private meeting last week. Their biggest concern is losing congressional majorities.

The Biden campaign’s national co-chair Jeffrey Katzenberg, a Hollywood mogul who has led Walt Disney and DreamWorks, also didn’t have good news for Biden Wednesday, according to Deadline.

During their private meeting in Las Vegas, Katzenberg said funds are drying up due to the ongoing conversations about Biden’s age and fitness.

On Wednesday, Biden in an interview said he would drop out of the presidential race if he was diagnosed with a medical condition. Hours later, he was diagnosed with COVID-19 and experienced mild symptoms.

Biden is currently self-isolating but continues to face pressure from congressional leaders and donors, attempting to persuade Biden to drop out of the race. Axios reported Biden could withdraw his bid over the weekend, citing Democratic sources.

What has President Obama said about President Biden?

Obama posted an encouraging message on social media after the debate, saying, “Bad debate nights happen.”

“Trust me, I know. But this election is still a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and someone who only cares about himself,” Obama added.

Although Obama has avoided making any other public statements, especially one urging Biden to drop out, his former aides, David Axelrod, and Jon Lovett, haven’t held back.

“Biden is likely headed for a landslide defeat to a lawless and unpopular former president,” Axelrod wrote in an opinion piece published in CNN.

Hollywood star George Clooney, a friend of Obama’s, wrote an explosive opinion piece in The New York Times last week that also called for Biden to withdraw from the 2024 Democratic ticket.

He wrote that “our party leaders need to stop telling us that 51 million people didn’t see what we just saw. We’re all so terrified by the prospect of a second Trump term that we’ve opted to ignore every warning sign.” Clooney’s op-ed came just weeks after he co-hosted a fundraiser for Biden in Los Angeles and raised $30 million.

“This is about age. Nothing more,” Clooney said.