Staff Reports
Looks like President Biden’s house of cards is teetering. While White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients is apparently on permanent damage control duty following Biden’s latest debate bungle, the president himself hasn’t bothered to touch base with top Democratic leaders. Five insiders let slip to NBC News that Biden hasn’t spoken with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer or House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries since last week's debate debacle. It seems Schumer and Jeffries are only getting the royal treatment from Zients. Even Steve Ricchetti, the president's counselor, is relegated to passing along messages via phone.
In typical fashion, Jeffries downplayed the whole situation, calling Biden’s showing “underwhelming,” but still pledged allegiance to the faltering leader. Meanwhile, the chatterbox pundits and columnists are lighting up the airwaves with demands for Biden to take an exit ramp off the 2024 ticket, although elected Democrats are less keen to say it out loud. Of course, these grumblings ironically grew louder as the week rolled on.
Washington Examiner: Biden damage control hasn’t reached top Democrats on the Hill https://t.co/H8miQo5dKa
— Ian Hansen 🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@IanHansenFeed) July 2, 2024
Apparently, Biden’s spokesman claims that he has chatted with a handful of elected officials since the debate. But let’s face it, this sprinkling of phone calls isn’t quelling the frustration among Democrats, who are increasingly fed up with the lack of transparency and the iron curtain around Biden’s inner circle. As one particularly peeved Democratic lawmaker put it, Biden’s family should have never let him near that debate stage in the first place. “I hold his family and his advisers directly responsible for this mess,” the lawmaker lamented to the media. “They are closest to him and should have pulled him out before this happened.”
Rumors are swirling that Democratic lawmakers suspect Biden’s handlers are rationing access to him, raising doubts about his mental and physical fitness. While Democratic lawmakers continue to rally behind Biden in public, whispers behind closed doors reveal a growing consensus that he needs to bow out of the race. At least four lawmakers have privately expressed this sentiment.
For Democrats in precarious districts and Senate races, Biden being the face of the party is like an albatross around their necks. Those in swing states are feeling the heat as they try to win over independents and swing voters while shouldering the burden of a president in freefall. As one jittery lawmaker confessed to the media, it’s tough not to feel panicked under such pressure.
