UPDATE: From the New York Times report on the Biden-family powwow to discuss the viability of his candidacy:
President Biden’s family is urging him to stay in the race and keep fighting despite last week’s disastrous debate performance, even as some members of his clan privately expressed exasperation at how he was prepared for the event by his staff, people close to the situation said on Sunday.Mr. Biden huddled with his wife, children and grandchildren at Camp David while he tried to figure out how to tamp down Democratic anxiety. While his relatives are acutely aware of how poorly he did against former President Donald J. Trump, they argued that he could still show the country that he is capable of serving for another four years.Mr. Biden has also been soliciting ideas from advisers about how to proceed, and his staff has been discussing whether he should hold a news conference or sit for interviews to defend himself to change the narrative, but nothing has been decided yet.One of the strongest voices imploring Mr. Biden to resist pressure to drop out was his son Hunter Biden, whom the president has long leaned on for advice, said one of the people informed about the discussions, who, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity to share internal deliberations.
If you want to read between the lines, the media narrative, for now, is that Jill and Hunter Biden are the ones keeping Joe Biden on the Democratic ticket. The media want him out, if you count the avalanche of editorials urging him to exit the race over the weekend and the numerous embarrassing stories that are being leaked to Axios to pressure Biden to step down: He’s good from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. His family has hid him and his condition from White House staff.
ORIGINAL POST: NBC News reports that the Biden family will gather on Sunday to discuss the president’s future.
There are already columns from well-connected-to-Obama columnists — like the New Yorker’s David Remnick — that seem to suggest a “a painful and selfless conclusion” may already be in the bag.
But this is how NBC describes the state of play for this weekend: Elected Dems are going to give the Bidens time to come to their own conclusion, at least for now:
One Democratic House member who believes Biden should drop out of the race — but has yet to call for that publicly — told NBC News that three colleagues expressed the same sentiment to him during votes on the House floor Friday.At the same time, there is an understanding among top Democrats that Biden should be given space to determine next steps. They believe only the president, in consultation with his family, can decide whether to move forward or to end his campaign early — and that he won’t respond well to being pushed.“The decision-makers are two people — it’s the president and his wife,” one of the sources familiar with the discussions said, adding: “Anyone who doesn’t understand how deeply personal and familial this decision will be isn’t knowledgeable about the situation.”
And once again for emphasis:
Another person familiar with the dynamics said Biden will ultimately listen to only one adviser.“The only person who has ultimate influence with him is the first lady,” this person said. “If she decides there should be a change of course, there will be a change of course.”
So Jill Biden has the nation’s future in her hands. The Associated Press reports:
Jill Biden was right at her husband’s side Saturday as they exited Air Force One to head for a pair of campaign stops at luxurious vacation homes on Long Island. And she got straight to the point when it was her turn to introduce the president at a tony fundraiser.“Joe isn’t just the right person for the job. He’s the only person for the job,” she declared.
I’m trying to think of a bigger metaphorical middle finger to Vice President Kamala Harris, and I’m coming up empty.
Joe Biden is the only person for the job if your primary criteria for “the job” is keeping Jill Biden as first lady of the United States.
The defensive spin from the Biden White House is that “from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Biden is dependably engaged.” That is fewer hours than the typical American’s workday.
This isn’t how our system works; the order of succession is there for a reason. No one in our government is irreplaceable. If the president is physically or mentally incapable of executing his duties, the cabinet is supposed to recognize this fact and “transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.” Declaring that the president is only “dependably engaged” for six hours a day is a de facto declaration that the president is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Forget being atop the ticket at the Democratic convention in Chicago; between the president’s doddering performance Thursday night, and the description of his limited lucid hours, Kamala Harris should be president right now.
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