July 6, 2024, presidential election news

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the Essence Festival in New Orleans on July 6.

Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday outlined the stakes of the upcoming election, attempting to convince Black voters to once again deliver a win to the Biden-Harris ticket.

Harris’ stop at the annual Black music and cultural festival comes as President Joe Biden’s campaign works to revive a corner of the coalition that helped propel him to the White House in 2020.

A large crowd listens as Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the Essence Festival in New Orleans on July 6.

Harris’ visit to New Orleans was part of her “Summer of Engagement,” a series of events this month aimed at key constituencies, including Black, women and young voters.

The vice president was not asked specifically about worries surrounding Biden’s reelection bid during the Saturday conversation, but since his shaky debate performance, she has repeatedly come to his defense. As CNN reported earlier this week, Harris and her staff have purposely snubbed most of the calls and texts coming their way and have reiterated she intends to stick by Biden’s side.

Ohio Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty speaks onstage during the Essence festival in New Orleans on July 6.

Ohio Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty, a former leader of the Congressional Black Caucus, encouraged attendees at the Essence Festival in New Orleans to continue to support President Joe Biden.

She pointed to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell appearing to freeze up when speaking to reporters in two separate incidents last year, adding that “nobody told him to step down.”

President Joe Biden attends a campaign event at Sherman Middle School in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5.

The Biden campaign now says it will no longer suggest questions to interviewers of the president. 

“While interview hosts have always been free to ask whatever questions they please, moving forward we will refrain from offering suggested questions,” a source familiar with the Biden booking operation tells CNN. 

That comes after Andrea Lawful-Sanders, a radio host in Philadelphia, told CNN that she received a list of recommended questions from Biden’s team, of which she chose four. She was among the first interviewers to talk to President Joe Biden following his lackluster debate performance, after allies called on the president to do more off-the-cuff engagements.

Virginia Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly said that President Joe Biden’s debate performance was “more than a bad night” but stopped short of calling on the president to withdraw from the 2024 race.

“I do believe that what happened at the debate was more than a bad night and that’s why that image is so indelible on so many minds,” Connolly told CNN’s Pamela Brown.

The White House has attempted to attribute Biden’s poor performance to a cold and to travel fatigue, but Connolly said it’s important “to know that that’s what it was and that’s all it was.”

Biden further told ABC News Friday in his first televised interview since the debate that his performance was because he had a “bad night” and that it was not indicative of a larger problem.

Connolly said the interview was “a good 22 minutes by and large,” but added that there were “some troubling aspects to that interview.”

“Invoking god almighty as the only intervention that is going to dissuade him from going forward, I hope Joe Biden didn’t really mean that,” Connolly said.

Connolly and the president worked closely when the congressman was a staffer on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the then-Sen. Biden was a member.

April Blash speaks to CNN at Essence Festival in New Orleans.

In the heat of New Orleans, thousands are gathered for the 30th annual Essence Festival of Culture where Vice President Kamala Harris will address attendees Saturday evening and where she made a surprise appearance at a concert Friday night.

Many are excited to see the vice president, appreciate the way she elevates being a graduate of a historically Black college and think she’s prepared to step in should President Joe Biden bow out of the race, which he has said he will not do. But ultimately, voters say they will vote for whoever the Democrat is in November.

April Blash, a government employee in Washington, DC, said replacing Biden with Harris as the nominee may be a good option.

Michelle Buxton speaks to CNN at Essence Festival in New Orleans.

Michelle Buxton of Chattanooga, Tennessee, said that Biden is facing undue pressure.

Right now, she said, she’s leaning toward voting for Biden. Buxton works in a senior living community as a receptionist and said she thinks it’s important to advocate for the elderly.

NyRee Clayton-Taylor speaks to CNN at Essence Festival in New Orleans.

NyRee Clayton-Taylor, who leads a youth-focused organization in Louisville, is a huge fan of Harris, but would be happy to support either Harris or Biden in the fall.

President Joe Biden sought “honest input” about his reelection efforts from his campaign co-chairs in a call this morning, Delaware Sen. Chris Coons, a campaign co-chair, told CNN. 

Biden’s conversation with his national team comes as the president has remained defiant amid pressure from within his own party to withdraw from the 2024 race.

“The Biden campaign co-chairs had a constructive, wide-open positive call today with the president that lasted more than an hour where he was asking for honest input and advice on the best path forward,” Coons said.

The call took place one day after the president’s campaign trip to Wisconsin and a 22-minute interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos — appearances Biden’s aides hope will help reassure voters about his ability to serve a second term, even as some Democrats remain unconvinced about his viability as the Democratic nominee.

“There was broad agreement that the Wisconsin rally was great, the Stephanopoulos interview was good, and he will be doing more direct engagement, whether it’s town halls or press conferences, to reassure folks who have not had a chance to hear from him directly,” added Coons, who has been among those allies calling for the president to participate in more unscripted engagements. 

The president is slated to hold his first formal press conference since the debate on Thursday around the conclusion of the NATO summit.

Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden participate in a debate in Atlanta on June 27.

President Joe Biden is attempting to tie his rival former President Donald Trump to a controversial pro-Trump platform called Project 2025.

CNN has previously reported that Project 2025 is a playbook crafted by the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation to fill the executive branch with thousands of Trump loyalists and reorient its many agencies’ missions around conservative ideals.

“It would give Trump limitless power over our daily lives and let him use the presidency to enact ‘revenge’ on his enemies, ban abortion nationwide and punish women who have an abortion, and gut the checks and balances that make America the greatest democracy in the world. It’s extreme and dangerous,” it added.

More background: The statement from Biden comes as his campaign is trying to refocus its attention on showing the contrast between the president and his predecessor, as questions about Biden’s political future and fitness for office remain after his poor performance at CNN’s presidential debate.

For his part, Trump sought to distance himself from the conservative group’s plans to radically reshape the federal government. In a post to his social media site, Trump claimed, “I know nothing about Project 2025.”

His campaign has sought for months to make clear that the blueprint is not its official policy platform.

CNN senior political commentator David Axelrod, who served as a senior adviser to former President Barack Obama, says President Joe Biden should withdraw from the 2024 race.

Axelrod argued in a Saturday op-ed for CNN that “duty and love of country requires” Biden to step aside, adding that he believes the president will “eventually” do so.

The comments from a former presidential insider put further pressure on the White House, which is struggling to grapple with the fallout from Biden’s poor showing during CNN’s presidential debate last week.

Concerns about the viability of Biden’s campaign weren’t quelled Friday evening by the airing of the president’s interview with ABC News. Biden showed “defiant delusion” in the interview, Axelrod wrote.

Read Axelrod’s piece calling for Biden to step aside here.

President Joe Biden listens as citations are read during a Medal of Honor ceremony at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 3.

Andrea Lawful-Sanders, the radio personality who interviewed President Joe Biden Wednesday, told CNN’s Victor Blackwell on Saturday that Biden’s team had sent her questions in advance “for approval.”

Blackwell pointed out that both Lawful-Sanders and Earl Ingram, another radio host who interviewed the president recently, asked Biden “essentially the same questions.”

“If the White House is trying now to prove the vim, vigor, acuity of the president, I don’t know how they do that by sending questions first, before the interviews, so that the president knows what’s coming,” Blackwell said.

A Biden campaign spokesperson on Saturday did not deny that the campaign had provided questions but said interviews were not conditioned on the acceptance of those questions.

Biden made some notable fumbles in his interview with Lawful-Sanders, including referring to himself as “the first Black woman to serve with a Black president” when asked about his accomplishments as president.

This all comes as the president’s mental acuity has been under scrutiny following his lackluster debate performance.

In his interview with Ingram, Biden said that he “screwed up” during last week’s CNN presidential debate and conceded that he “made a mistake.” 

CNN has reached out to the White House for comment.

This post has been updated with additional reporting.

Read more here on Biden’s radio interview.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick is pictured during an interview with CNN on July 6.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick said on Saturday that as long as President Joe Biden is the Democratic nominee, “I’m with him.” But he added that if Biden steps aside from the presidential race, there needs to be a quick and intensive process to find the next nominee. 

“If he does withdraw … I do believe there needs to be, albeit a short, competitive process to arrive at who our nominee ought to be going for. And I think that’s a real opportunity for us,” Patrick told CNN’s Victor Blackwell.  

Patrick, who is one of only three elected Black governors in US history, said that Biden has to decide and not “just try to power through this moment.”

“At the same time, there is tremendous depth on the Democratic bench. So I’m not worried about that. I think that a competitive process gives us a chance to showcase that depth of talent. It also gives us a chance to appeal to the disaffected in our own party and beyond,” he added.

Patrick, who made his own bid for the White House in 2020, was asked if he would throw his hat in the ring if Biden steps aside. “If the president makes a decision to withdraw, I think I, like a whole lot of other people, will have to look at this seriously. And we have to look at whether the process is, in fact, open. I hope it is. And if it is, then I, my family and my team will look hard at that,” he said.

ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos had a tall task on Friday: Press President Joe Biden on his age, his acuity and the future of his reelection campaign. It was one of the most anticipated interviews of his career.

Stephanopoulos mostly lived up to the challenge, asking rapid-fire, biting questions that did not let Biden off the hook. Although there was no single standout moment, Stephanopoulos challenged Biden’s denialism about the political damage the president did to himself during his disastrous debate performance last week.

Behind his questions, viewers got a sense of Stephanopoulos’ frustration, which is shared by the entire White House press corps. Many of the journalists who cover Biden every day are seething at what some say is a White House that has deceived them and has kept the president from interacting in an open format with the press.

Stephanopoulos was measured but persistent, clearly aware of the deeply personal and sensitive issues at hand. But he also sometimes seemed almost in disbelief at Biden’s answers. Stephanopoulos pressed Biden the most on whether he has had, and whether he would agree to a neurological and cognitive evaluation, asking him about it five times in a row.

The interview only lasted about 22 minutes and was aired unedited. So any and all pauses, stumbles and even some production issues (like a camera losing focus when Biden leaned forward) were bared for all to see.

Although the interview did not necessarily have any earth-shattering moments, it was important for the Biden campaign to try to halt the negative whirlpool around it. 

Read more here on Stephanopoulos’ interview.

So far, five congressional Democrats — all members of the House — have publicly called for President Joe Biden to withdraw from the presidential race.

They are:

President Joe Biden arrives in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5.

President Joe Biden’s deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks said Saturday that Biden “defied expectations” in his Friday ABC News interview, adding, “I think the president showed up.”

Fulks said on MSNBC that Biden “understands that he has to assure the American people; that’s why he’s going to continue to robustly campaign.”

CNN reported Friday that the Biden campaign viewed the interview as a win. 

Fulks said that ultimately, the race hasn’t altered since the debate.

Asked about Biden’s comments that he’s best positioned to beat former President Donald Trump, Fulks said that “every single elected official that runs has to believe that they are the best option.”

Former President Donald Trump walks after giving remarks at a rally in Chesapeake, Virginia, on June 28.

Former President Donald Trump on Saturday said he thought President Joe Biden should move ahead with his presidential campaign amid calls by some Democrats for Biden to step aside. 

“Crooked Joe Biden should ignore his many critics and move forward, with alacrity and strength, with his powerful and far reaching campaign,” Trump wrote in a sarcasm-tinged post on Truth Social. 

Trump mocked Biden and made several baseless claims about the president’s policies as he called Biden’s campaign one of “American Destruction.” 

Trump’s post comes as he and his allies are trying to determine what the Democratic incumbent stepping aside would actually mean for the Trump campaign, and some Republicans believe the path back to the White House would likely be easier with Biden at the top of the ticket.

“Chaos is our friend,” a person close to Trump said.

As one Republican pollster put it, Trump would “rather go with the devil he knows than the devil he doesn’t know.”

Minnesota Rep. Angie Craig called on President Joe Biden to step aside from the 2024 race as calls among Democrats continue to grow after the president’s lackluster debate performance. Craig represents a competitive House seat in the Minneapolis area. 

Craig said the stakes of the election are too high for Biden to remain in the race.

Craig, who represents a competitive House seat in the Minneapolis area, had previously expressed skepticism about a Biden reelection run, telling MinnPost in 2022 that she was “going to do everything in my power as a member of Congress to make sure that we have a new generation of leadership.”

“I would say we need new leaders in Washington up and down the ballot in the Democratic Party,” Craig said when asked if she would support Biden if he ran again. 

President Joe Biden’s 22-minute interview with ABC News that aired Friday night again put a spotlight on the divisions within the Democratic party about the president’s viability as the 2024 standard-bearer. 

During the interview, Biden dismissed any suggestion that he’s not the most qualified candidate to beat former President Donald Trump in November, slamming his critics and polling.

Democratic Sen. Chris Coons came to Biden’s defense, saying on X: “President Biden has delivered remarkable progress for the American people, and he has plans to do even more in his next term. I can’t wait to help him continue to take the fight to Trump and win in November.”

Coons is a longtime friend and co-chair of Biden’s reelection campaign, and he has been one of the staunchest public defenders of the president since last week’s debate debacle.

What other Democratic lawmakers are saying: Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman echoed Coons, saying on X: “Joe Biden is our guy.”

Illinois Rep. Mike Quigley, who urged Biden to leave the race, said that now is not the time for “cheerleading,” adding: “With the greatest respect, no, all that really matters is avoiding a second Trump presidency.”

And Texas Rep. Lloyd Doggett said there was “nothing” he heard Biden say Friday that would make him reconsider his call for Biden to leave the presidential race. “Joe Biden is a good man. He’s an American patriot. Yet the need for him to step aside is more urgent tonight than when I first called for it on Tuesday,” Doggett told CNN.

Another Democratic House lawmaker told CNN: “He did a lot better than the debate but lots of people are worried he’s going to regress.”

CNN previously reported that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called a virtual meeting Sunday for Democratic committee ranking members amid questions about Biden’s candidacy — an indicator of the lingering concerns that persist within the party.

President Joe Biden speaks during an interview with ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5.

President Joe Biden’s struggle to prove he’s got the strength and cognitive capacity for a second term is becoming an excruciating personal and national ordeal.

Watching a visibly aged Biden answer frank questions Friday about his health on prime-time television — which would normally remain between a patient and their doctor – felt like an affront to presidential dignity. It was sad to see a person who’s respected and beloved by many Americans suffer such a plight. And it would be a hard heart that did not empathize with Biden as he confronts the painful human realities of aging in the most public manner imaginable.

Yet Biden’s position, his shocking presidential debate performance and his defiant refusal to contemplate its implications for his reelection campaign mean he’s forcing the country to have the conversation.

The political tide may be turning against Biden, but the interview underscored his deep pride in a presidency that it took him nearly half a century to achieve. And he’s not close to giving up his lifelong mantra to stand up and fight when he’s knocked down — a factor that will exacerbate the Democratic Party’s dilemma.

While his interview performance was far stronger than the president’s often-incoherent showing at the CNN debate in Atlanta, that’s not saying much. It did not contain any new disasters that would push him immediately out of the race. But it equally did little to quell the storm assailing his campaign and raised fresh intrigue about his health amid increasing signs his Democratic power base is beginning to crack.

It’s becoming clear that the president, his party and the country are slipping inexorably into a political crisis that raises the extraordinary possibility that a presumptive nominee could be pushed aside weeks before his party’s national convention and four months before one of the most critical elections in history.

Read more on Biden’s ABC interview here.

President Joe Biden said in a high-stakes interview on ABC that he was “sick” and “feeling terrible” before his poor performance in the CNN presidential debate, but dismissed the question of whether it was a sign of a more serious condition — and said he would not be taking and releasing the results of a cognitive test.

If you missed the interview, here’s what to know:

Biden says debate was a “bad night,” not a bigger problem: The president said in the interview that he was “sick” and “feeling terrible” before the debate. Asked whether it was a bad episode or a sign of a more serious condition, Biden dismissed those concerns.

The president takes ownership of poor performance, but offers a new excuse: The president said he has not watched a replay of his performance. When he was asked whether he knew how badly it was going, he said it was “nobody’s fault but mine.” 

But later in the interview, Biden offered a different explanation. He said he was distracted by his opponent Donald Trump talking out of turn even though the former president’s microphone was muted. 

Biden and Trump and their teams agreed to the rules ahead of the debate. 

Biden won’t take a cognitive test and release it to voters: Biden said that “no one said I had to” have cognitive and neurological exams, telling Stephanopoulos that, “I get a full neurological test every day” – referring to the demands of his job.

When asked whether he’s had cognitive tests and an exam by a neurologist, Biden said no.

“No one said I had to. … They said I’m good.”

Biden denies polls show him losing to Trump: The president said that all of his pollsters characterize the race as a “toss-up” as he began to point to specific polls before trailing off. 

Biden claimed that “the New York Times had me down 10 points before the debate, nine now, or whatever the hell it is.” 

CNN’s Daniel Dale fact-checked the president’s claims and found the president did not gain a point in New York Times polling after the debate. In fact, the Times’ post-debate poll, conducted with Siena College, showed Biden doing three points worse against Trump than he had done in the final Times/Siena poll before the debate. Biden’s specific numbers were also wrong, though he did acknowledge his uncertainty about the data when he said “or whatever the hell it is.”

Read more takeaways here.  

President Joe Biden speaks with the press before boarding Air Force One at Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5.

President Joe Biden has no public events on Saturday and is expected to spend the day in Wilmington, Delaware.

On Sunday, the president will travel to the battleground state of Pennsylvania for a set of campaign events, continuing his campaign push despite calls from within the Democratic party for the president to step aside in the 2024 race. 

As CNN previously reported, the president is expected to deliver remarks at a church service in an African American community in Philadelphia on Sunday morning at 10:45 a.m. ET. 

 He will then participate in a “campaign community event” in Harrisburg at 3:15 p.m. ET. 

The president is expected to arrive back at the White House Sunday evening at 6:25 p.m. ET.

Kamala Harris speaks onstage during Day 1 of the 2024 Essence Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana on July 5.

Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday made an appearance at the evening concert series of the Essence Festival in New Orleans, following a week of growing concerns about whether President Joe Biden can serve another term.

“I had to stop by just to congratulate Essence on 30 years of the Essence Festival of Culture. So, enjoy this evening. Let us always celebrate the diversity, the depth and the beauty of our culture. Have fun tonight,” Harris told attendees at Caesars Superdome.

As many look to Harris as the obvious successor if Biden steps aside, the vice president has repeatedly defended him. She told CBS earlier this week: “Joe Biden is our nominee.”

It is unclear if Harris watched Biden’s high-stakes ABC News interview Friday, and when asked by a reporter her thoughts on the interview, she waved and entered her motorcade.

Harris’ visit is part of her “Summer of Engagement” events where she will travel to several states and participate in events aimed at key constituencies including Black, women and young voters.

Rep. John Garamendi speaks with CNN on July 5.

Democratic Rep. John Garamendi of California defended President Joe Biden in an interview with CNN on Friday, saying he’s confident Biden can still beat Trump in November.

“He’s done it once before, and he’ll do it again,” Garamendi told CNN’s Jim Sciutto. “There’s time ahead in this election, and he will be out in the stump. He’ll be doing his work, and he will be showing in the daily work of being the president that he’s on top of the game.”

“Will he win this race? He will because Trump is the opponent,” the congressman continued. “The unfortunate thing about all of this is the feeding frenzy has taken Trump off the television sets.”

Former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Chesapeake, Virginia, on June 28.

Democratic Rep. Mike Quigley of Illinois, who earlier tonight urged President Joe Biden to leave the race, said that now is not the time for “cheerleading.”

Two of the most disturbing moments of the ABC interview, Quigley said, were Biden saying he hadn’t watched the debate and all that really mattered was him giving his best effort to win the election.

Responding to charges from Sen. John Fetterman that the Democratic party needs to “grow a spine” and support Biden, Quigley said that would be a “recipe for disaster.”

President Joe Biden offered a tempered response when asked by ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos Friday how he would feel if he stays in the race and former President Donald Trump wins another term in November.

“I feel as long as I gave it my all and I did the goodest job as I know I can do, that’s what this is about,” Biden said. 

Biden has repeatedly said that the world is at an inflection point in the battle between democracy and autocracy, and he has cast his predecessor as a danger to democracy. 

In this handout photo provided by ABC, President Joe Biden speaks with 'This Week' anchor George Stephanopoulos during an interview in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5.

President Joe Biden’s aides are trying to hold up the president’s high-stakes interview with ABC News Friday night as a success, while at the same time emphasizing this is just the beginning of his attempt to offer reassurance after last week’s disastrous debate.

Two separate Biden aides used the word “strong” to describe the president’s sit-down with George Stephanopoulos. One of them said the president’s team felt that he used the opportunity to make the case that he is, in fact, the best candidate to take on Donald Trump.

Going into the interview, Biden’s primary goal was to “answer the question that was on people’s minds after the debate and to make sure that 3.5 years of his record are not discounted because of 90 minutes,” the aide said.

The Biden campaign has previewed that the president’s schedule in the coming days will more aggressively feature unscripted moments – including more interviews and a press conference next week.

Even as Biden and his campaign publicly dig in, Democratic calls for the president to abandon his reelection bid have only been growing. And it’s abundantly clear that one interview will not be enough to squash the widespread concerns. 

One Democratic House lawmaker who was despondent about Biden’s performance at the debate told CNN he thought the interview was “certainly better” than the debate.

But, he added: “We are still screwed.” 

An adviser to former president Donald Trump said President Joe Biden “lived to fight another day” after watching ABC’s interview with the president. 

The adviser’s remarks come as Trump’s campaign is closely watching Biden’s handling of the Democratic handwringing over his debate performance for any clue into whether their opponent could change in the coming days or weeks.

Around the Trump campaign, many advisers and allies believe the path to winning in November is easier without a change in the ticket, especially after Biden’s debate performance, though they have started considering scenarios under which that is no longer the case.

 During the interview with George Stephanopoulos, Trump allies seized on Biden declining to undergo further neurological and cognitive testing.

Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt wrote on X: “Biden is in denial and in decline.”

President Biden will make two campaign stops in Pennsylvania on Sunday, a campaign official tells CNN, continuing his campaign push despite calls from within the Democratic party for the president to step aside in the 2024 race.

The president is expected to deliver remarks at a church service in an African American community in Philadelphia on Sunday morning, the official said. He will then participate in a “campaign community event” in Harrisburg in the afternoon, the official added.

Biden has been resistant and defiant in the face of calls for him to end his presidential campaign, insisting he will stay in the race through November.

Biden’s campaign canceled its initial plans to speak to the National Education Association convention in Philadelphia on Sunday due to an ongoing strike, saying the president won’t cross a picket line.

South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham issued a long statement calling President Joe Biden’s interview on ABC tonight “chilling” and insisted that anyone who believes the president is as fit as he was at the start of his term should take their own “cognitive test.” 

President Joe Biden’s campaign is fundraising on his performance in an interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos, another signal that the campaign is happy with how it went.

“I know you’ve been hearing a lot from the pundits and politicians this week about my debate performance. You may even be tuning into my interview with George Stephanopoulous tonight,” a Friday fundraising email says.

“I really believe what I told him,” he adds. “I am staying in this race.”

Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia speaks during a news conference at the Capitol in Washington, DC, on December 5, 2023.

When ABC anchor George Stephanopoulos noted a Friday report in The Washington Post that said Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia is trying to put together a group of fellow Democratic senators to ask Biden to withdraw from the election, Biden responded, “Well, Mark is a good man. We’ve never had that – he also tried to get the nomination too. Mark’s not – Mark and I have a different perspective. I respect him.” 

Facts First: This needs context. Warner has never run for the Democratic presidential nomination. He did make extensive preparations for a possible run for the 2008 nomination, including hiring staff and raising millions for a political action committee, but he announced in October 2006 that he had decided not to launch a campaign after all. And he has not sought the nomination since then.

Biden did run in that 2008 presidential primary, which was won by Barack Obama. 

Texas Rep. Lloyd Doggett, the first sitting Democratic member of Congress to call on President Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 race earlier this week, told CNN Friday that the “need for (Biden) to step aside is more urgent tonight than when I first called for it.”

While he described Biden as a “good man” and “an American patriot,” Doggett argued that “we can’t afford to lose this race and that’s why we have to pick the strongest candidate possible.”

Doggett added that “every day he delays” making the decision to step aside, Biden “makes it more difficult for a new person to come on board who can defeat Donald Trump.”

While the congressman declined to name who he would like to see take the president’s place as the nominee, Doggett warned that Biden “does not want his legacy to be that he’s the one who turned our country over to a tyrant.”

Democratic Reps. Mike Quigley of Illinois and Seth Moulton of Massachusetts also called on the president to step aside earlier Friday. Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey urged Biden to “carefully” evaluate whether he remains the party’s best hope to defeat Trump.

President Joe Biden attends a campaign event at Sherman Middle School in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5.

Asked during his interview with ABC whether he would step down if he became convinced he could not beat Donald Trump, President Joe Biden said he would only do so “if the Lord Almighty comes down” and tells him to.

ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos responded: “I agree that the Lord Almighty is not going to come down. But if you are told reliably from your allies, and your friends and supporters in the Democratic Party, in the House, in the Senate that they’re concerned you’re going to lose the House and the Senate if you stay in, what will you do?”

Biden declined to answer the question. “It’s not going to happen,” he added.

President Joe Biden called Sen. Mark Warner “a good man” but he has a “different perspective” when asked Friday about a Washington Post report that Sen. Mark Warner is working to get like-minded Senate Democrats together to discuss the future of the president’s 2024 bid.

“Well, Mark is a good man. We’ve never had that. He also tried to get the nomination too. Mark’s not, Mark and I have a different perspective. I respect him,” Biden said.

It’s unclear what exactly the president is referring to, but Warner had reportedly considered a White House run ahead of the 2008 presidential election.

The president also said he’s spoken in recent days to members of Democratic congressional leadership, and they have told him to “stay in the race.”

“I’ve spoken all of them in detail, including Jim Clyburn. Every one of them. They all said I should stay in the race. Stay in the race,” Biden said when asked hypothetically what he would say if Sen. Schumer, Rep. Jeffries or Rep. Pelosi came to him with concerns.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta told CNN’s Jim Sciutto that it’s “very hard, from looking at the brief clips” of President Joe Biden’s interview with ABC News “to really make an assessment” on the president’s health.

Gupta added that, in the United States, Medicare asks that anyone over the age of 65 get a cognitive test as part of their annual wellness checkup. 

“That would be President Biden and former President Trump, so that should be part of the regular testing,” Gupta said.

Gupta wrote earlier Friday that it was time for Biden to undergo cognitive and neurological testing and share the results with the public.

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden leave the stage during a campaign rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, on June 28.

A defiant President Joe Biden emphatically dismissed any suggestion that he’s not the most qualified candidate to beat former President Donald Trump in November, slamming his critics and polling.

“I don’t think anybody’s more qualified to be president or win this race than me,” Biden said Friday in an interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. 

The president later questioned whether any other Democratic leader would have his foreign policy acumen.

“Who’s going to be able to hold NATO together like me? Who’s going to be able to be in a position where I’m able to keep the Pacific basin in a position where we’re at least check being in China now? Who’s going to – who’s going to do that? Who has that reach?” Biden asked.

Critics who say he is putting himself first “don’t … know what they’re talking about. They’re just wrong,” he said, declining to answer a question about how he would respond to lawmakers concerned about down-ballot races urging him to bow out because “it’s not going to happen.”

Asked by Stephanopoulos whether he was being honest with himself about his ability to beat Trump, Biden said, “Yes. Yes, yes yes.”

He pointed to previous polls that showed he couldn’t win in 2020 and subsequent down-ballot elections as proof, denying extensive polling that reflects a race where he is trailing. 

Pressed on his low approval rating and whether it would be tougher to win four years later, he said, “Not when you’re running against a pathological liar. Not when he hasn’t been challenged in the way he’s about to be challenged.”

Biden did not preview how he intends to challenge Trump, saying that he has not yet done so because he was “also doing a hell of a lot of other things, like wars around the world, like keeping NATO together.”

He said that all of his pollsters characterize the race as a “toss up” as he began to point to specific polls before trailing off.

Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. John Fetterman attends a Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on April 18, 2023.

Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. John Fetterman defended President Joe Biden Friday amid growing questions around his ability to serve another term and the viability of his campaign, telling CNN that he believes the president is “the right man” to support in this race.

He added that while he’s disagreed with Biden on a few issues, “I wouldn’t be here right now if I didn’t absolutely believe that he is the right man and he has deserved to have our kinds of support.”

He told his Democratic colleagues that “panicking” isn’t going to make the situation better.

President Joe Biden arrives at Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5.

President Joe Biden said Friday that “no one said I had to” have cognitive and neurological exams, telling ABC News’ George Stephanopolous that “I get a full neurological test every day.”

“I have medical doctors traveling everywhere. Every president does, as you know. Medical doctors from the best of the world travel with me everywhere I go. I have an ongoing assessment of what I’m doing. They don’t hesitate to tell me if they think there’s something else is wrong.”

When asked whether he’s had cognitive tests and an exam by a neurologist, Biden said no. “No one said I had to. … They said I’m good.”

In an analysis published Friday, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta – a practicing neurosurgeon – urged Biden to undergo thorough cognitive and neurological testing and to share his results.

Gupta wrote that it was concerning to watch Biden’s performance at the debate. Detailed testing “can help determine whether there is a simpler explanation for the symptoms displayed or if there is something more concerning,” he said.

President Joe Biden said he’s “still in good shape” and sidestepped a question on whether he had more lapses in recent months.

“Can I run the 100 in 10 flat? No, but I’m still in good shape,” Biden told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos when asked about increased mental lapses.

Biden was also asked about his physical condition, when Stephanopoulos asked, “Are you more frail?”

Biden responded, “No.”

Those comments coming as CNN and other outlets have reported on the growing concerns about Biden’s age and political future.

Former President Donald Trump speaks during a debate with President Joe Biden at CNN's Atlanta studios on June 27.

President Joe Biden offered another debate performance defense – in addition to sickness and fatigue – pointing to former President Donald Trump speaking while his microphone was muted as the reason he wasn’t “in control” of the event.

“It came to me I was having a bad night when I realized that even when I was answering a question, even when they turned his mic off, he was still shouting. And I let it distract me. I’m not blaming it on that, but I realized that I just wasn’t in control,” he said in an interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos.

Biden and Trump and their teams agreed to the rules ahead of the debate.

President Joe Biden has said his poor debate performance was due to fatigue from illness and on Friday added that he had even been tested for Covid.

“I was sick – I was feeling terrible. As a matter of fact, the docs with me I asked if they did a Covid test, they were trying to figure out what’s wrong. They did a test to see whether or not I had some infection, you know, a virus. I didn’t. I just had a really bad cold,” he said in an interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. 

The White House did not immediately respond to CNN’s inquiry as to whether the president took the test before or after the debate.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One earlier Friday that Biden had a “verbal check-in” with his doctor after the debate, after repeatedly saying at Wednesday’s press briefing that the president has had no medical exams since his February physical.

She cast Biden’s check-in as “a conversation” with his physician, Kevin O’Connor, after reporters noted that the president told a group of Democratic governors that he saw a doctor. 

“So he did have a short verbal check-in in the recent days about his cold. It wasn’t a medical exam or physical, just want to be super, super clear about that. It was a conversation and his doctor didn’t think an examination was necessary,” Jean-Pierre said Friday after saying Wednesday that Biden “did not get checked out by the doctor.”

 Jean-Pierre on Wednesday dismissed the question, telling briefing room reporters, “It’s a cold, guys. It’s a cold.”

“I know that it affects everybody differently. We’ve all had colds, and so no, he was not checked out by the doctor,” she said.

Illinois Democratic Rep. Mike Quigley speaks during a hearing in Washington, DC, on May 18, 2022.

Illinois Democratic Rep. Mike Quigley on Friday called on President Joe Biden to step aside, joining a growing number of his colleagues who have raised concerns about the viability of the president’s reelection bid.

Quigley also downplayed the impact of Biden stepping down on the Democratic party.

“For the same reasons they came together four years ago, they will come together this time behind one candidate. And I think people underrate the bench,” Quigley said, adding that he has “the greatest respect for the vice president.”

He also stressed, “the alternative now is a very bleak scenario, with, I would say, almost no hope of succeeding.”

Quigley told CNN’s Kasie Hunt earlier this week that Biden would have to consider the impact of his decision on down-ballot races.

Supporters cheer as President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, on June. 28.

In his Friday interview with ABC, President Joe Biden claimed that “the New York Times had me down 10 points before the debate, nine now, or whatever the hell it is.” ABC aired the remark in an initial excerpt from the interview, which has not yet aired in full.

Facts First: Biden’s claim that he gained a point in New York Times polling after the debate is false. In fact, the Times’ post-debate poll, conducted with Siena College, showed Biden doing three points worse against former President Donald Trump than he had done in the final Times/Siena poll before the debate.

Biden’s specific numbers were also wrong. He was not “down 10 points before the debate” in Times/Siena polling. In fact, he was down three percentage points with likely voters and six percentage points with registered voters. In the Times/Siena poll after the debate, those margins grew to six percentage points with likely voters and nine percentage points with registered voters.

Biden did acknowledge his uncertainty about the data when he said “or whatever the hell it is.” But he was wrong, nonetheless.

When the 46th President of the United States took the debate stage a week ago, it became apparent, even from his first answer, that this would not be the performance he hoped for.

For me as a brain specialist, it was concerning to watch President Joe Biden, and it quickly became clear that I was not alone in my reaction. Over the past week, I received more than a dozen calls, texts and emails from medical colleagues who, like me, specialize in the brain. It wasn’t that what we noticed was necessarily new but that it was particularly pronounced, and right from the start of the debate.

From a neurological standpoint, we were concerned with his confused rambling; sudden loss of concentration in the middle of a sentence; halting speech and absence of facial animation, resulting at times in a flat, open-mouthed expression. To be clear, these are only observations, not in any way diagnostic of something deeper, and none of these doctors wished to suggest that was the case.

The consensus from the doctors reaching out to me, however, was that the president should be encouraged to undergo detailed cognitive and movement disorder testing, and those results should be made available to the public.

Over the past five years, I have reported extensively on the advances in the world of treating and reducing risk of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy body dementia and vascular dementia. For the documentary “The Last Alzheimer’s Patient,” I even went through extensive cognitive testing to demonstrate what it entailed and determine whether I had problems with executive functioning, judgment or memory lapses, as well as blood tests to determine things like the level of abnormal proteins that may be present in my brain and my B12 levels. My sense of smell and my genetic risk factors were checked. This type of testing is not necessary for most people as a matter of routine, but every one of the brain doctors I spoke to recommended that level of examination for Biden.

Read Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s full analysis

Cornel West, independent presidential candidate speaks at Second Baptist Church in Santa Ana, California, on March 29.

Independent presidential candidate Cornel West’s campaign announced they submitted signatures in Georgia, a key battleground state whose electorate includes a sizable coalition of Black voters — a group West has been aggressively courting.

West’s campaign announced on Friday they’ve submitted more than four times the required number of signatures necessary to gain ballot access in Georgia. Independent presidential candidates must submit 7,500 valid signatures to qualify for ballot access in the state.

West’s campaign said in a statement its signature collection effort in Georgia “reflects a strategic focus on engaging with diverse communities across the state.” The statement also said West’s campaign will focus its ballot access efforts on “other key battleground states, further solidifying its presence and impact on the national stage.”

Gaining ballot access in Georgia and other battleground states could allow West, a prominent Black intellectual and progressive champion, to pull some Black voters and progressive voters away from President Biden in the most critical parts of the country. Biden won the 2020 election by earning the vast majority of support from Black voters, but some polls have indicated his support has dropped.

West is currently on the ballot in four states: South Carolina, Alaska, Oregon and Colorado.

Democratic Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton speaks to camera during a TV interview at the in Washington, DC, on April 17, 2023.

Democratic Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton is formally calling on President Joe Biden to leave the race. 

Sydney Simon, Moulton’s communications director, told CNN it is indeed a formal call for Biden to go after Moulton had a few days to sleep on it. 

“The exact mechanism that we should follow in order for other leaders to rise up, whether it’s some sort of primary process, whether it goes directly to Vice President (Kamala) Harris, I’m not sure about that, that’s yet to be determined,” Moulton also told WBUR. “And that’s in many ways the substance of the deep, honest conversations that Democrats are having behind the scenes now and over the course of the past week.”

“I deeply respect President Biden and all the great things he has done for America, but I have grave concerns about his ability to defeat Donald Trump,” Moulton said in a statement Tuesday. “The unfortunate reality is that the status quo will likely deliver us President Trump.”

President Joe Biden speaks during a debate with former President Donald Trump at CNN's Atlanta studios on June 27.

President Joe Biden said he has not watched a replay of his performance, but asked if he knew how badly it was going, he took ownership, saying it was “nobody’s fault but mine.”

When asked if he has watched the debate since it took place, Biden said, “I don’t think I did, no.”

As he answered the question, Biden offered a confusing tangent on New York Times polling.

Pressed on his performance, he said, “Well I was just having a bad night.”

The conversation marked Biden’s first televised interview since his debate performance, a high-stakes moment for his political future as a mounting list of Democrats – lawmakers, donors, and voters – express concerns about the viability of his candidacy.

Watch what Biden told ABC:

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President Joe Biden on Friday downplayed his poor performance in last week’s debate, offering additional excuses for the showing and adding that it was his fault alone.

The president said he was “sick” and “feeling terrible” before the debate. Asked whether it was a bad episode or a sign of a more serious condition, Biden dismissed those concerns.

“It was a bad episode. No indication of any serious condition. I didn’t listen to my instincts in terms of preparing, and I had a bad night,” he said in an interview taped Friday afternoon with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos.

Biden added: “Because I was sick – I was feeling terrible. As a matter of fact, the docs with me I asked if they did a Covid test, they were trying to figure out what’s wrong. They did a test to see whether or not I had some infection, you know, a virus. I didn’t. I just had a really bad cold.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called a virtual meeting on Sunday for Democratic committee ranking members amid questions about President Joe Biden’s viability as the 2024 standard-bearer, a Democratic lawmaker confirms.

NBC first reported the meeting.

President Joe Biden speaks to the press before boarding Air Force One at Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5.

President Joe Biden told reporters before boarding Air Force One that he is “completely ruling out” getting out of the 2024 race, remaining defiant in the wake of his debate performance sparking questions about his age and fitness for office. 

“Completely ruling that out,” Biden said from the tarmac in Madison, Wisconsin, when asked if he was going to drop out of the race. 

The president also said he’s spoken to 20 members of Congress but did not name them. He said they are telling him to “stay in the race.” 

When asked about The Washington Post reporting that Sen. Mark Warner is working to get Senate Democrats to ask President Biden to step aside in the 2024 race, the president appeared to say that Warner was the “only one considering that.” 

Biden was also asked about Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey’s statement urging Biden to “carefully evaluate” whether he remains Democrats’ best hope to defeat Trump. Biden said that Healey “didn’t say anything when I was in the room.” 

Biden was also asked how his ABC News interview went, and he told reporters he “thought it was a good interview.”

Watch:

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A US senior administration official on Friday downplayed the impact of President Joe Biden’s debate performance on his interaction with leaders as part of the administration’s preview of next week’s NATO summit.

“Foreign leaders have seen Joe Biden up close and personal for the last three years. They know who they’re dealing with, and they know how effective he’s been,” the official said on a call with reporters. 

As CNN reported Friday, there will “certainly be a spotlight,” in the words of one former US senior diplomat, on Biden at the NATO summit after his poor debate showing last week. Biden will be under immense pressure to perform well at the high-stakes gathering and show that he is still a viable competitor to former President Donald Trump, multiple diplomats told CNN. 

Biden will welcome the world leaders to Washington, DC, for the 75th anniversary summit on Tuesday evening when he and first lady Jill Biden host a commemorative event at the Mellon Auditorium, where the Washington Treaty, which formed the basis for NATO, was signed.

President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event at Sherman Middle School, in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5.

President Joe Biden defiantly pledged to remain in the 2024 race Friday despite growing worries from within the Democratic Party in the wake of his debate performance sparking questions about his age and fitness for office.

Biden also took direct aim at Donald Trump, prompting cheers as he said that he beat Trump and will “beat him again in 2020” — the president seeming to reference the last time he went head-to-head with Trump, instead of 2024.

That message was punctuated by the choice of music as the president glad-handed with some rally attendees on stage: Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down.” 

One voter, Jeff Martinson, told CNN after the rally that seeing Biden speak Friday changed his calculus. Martinson, a Wisconsin voter, initially had some “concerns” about the president but came away from Friday’s rally saying the president gave a “very good showing.” Biden’s speech was forceful and energetic, though he made a few verbal slip-ups.

As Biden took the stage, a rally attendee appeared to unfurl a sign reading, “Pass the torch, Joe.” The sign was visible for a few moments before someone else tried to cover part of it with a Biden-Harris sign. The sign-holder crumpled up the sign after a few moments and stayed on the stage for the remainder of the president’s remarks.

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks at the Libertarian National Convention on May 24, 2024 in Washington, DC. 

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s campaign announced it resubmitted signatures in Nevada on Wednesday after the Nevada Secretary of State’s office provided the campaign with inaccurate information that could have potentially made their first batch of signatures invalid.

Kennedy’s campaign announced on Friday they submitted 30,000 additional signatures earlier this week to the state office as they fight to qualify in the key battleground state. Independent presidential candidates must submit 10,095 signatures to qualify for Nevada’s ballot.

Some background: In March, the campaign announced it had submitted 15,000 signatures to Nevada’s elections office. Later that month, Nevada Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar’s office admitted it “provided inaccurate guidance” to Kennedy’s campaign about laws governing signature collecting in the state. Presidential candidates must have their vice-presidential nominee on ballot access petitions in Nevada. Kennedy did not announce his running mate Nicole Shanahan until late March, weeks after the campaign submitted its first batch of signatures.

Last month, the Kennedy campaign filed a lawsuit against Aguilar seeking an injunction to block him from enforcing the state law requiring independent candidates to name their running mate prior to collecting signatures. In a statement, Kennedy campaign senior counsel Paul Rossi made no indication they would drop the lawsuit against Aguilar despite submitting additional signatures.

Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has qualified for the presidential ballot in New Mexico, the state’s elections office confirmed Friday, marking the eighth state where Kennedy has gained ballot access.

Kennedy submitted over 11,000 signatures to the New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office on Monday, well over the 3,562 valid signatures required by independent presidential candidates to gain ballot access in the state.

A spokesperson for the office confirmed Kennedy’s petition is valid, pointing to a list on the secretary of state’s website of potential candidates indicating Kennedy has qualified.

Kennedy has previously qualified in Michigan, California, Tennessee, Utah, Oklahoma, Hawaii and Delaware. With the addition of New Mexico, he is eligible to receive 105 electoral votes.

He has also submitted petitions or completed signature gathering in several other states.

Sen. Mark Warner on November 14, 2023 in Washington, DC.

An effort is underway by Virginia Sen. Mark Warner to get Senate Democrats on the same page about the future of President Joe Biden’s reelection bid, sources told CNN.

Warner, who is taking on a leadership role in the effort, is reaching a place where he thinks it is time for Biden to suspend his reelection campaign, a source familiar with his efforts told CNN.

Warner’s meeting with his colleagues, first reported by The Washington Post, is expected to take place Monday, according to a source familiar with the planning.

Warner declined CNN’s request for comment.

His spokeswoman, Rachel Cohen, neither confirmed nor denied the senator’s efforts in a statement to the Post earlier Friday.

“Like many other people in Washington and across the country, Senator Warner believes these are critical days for the president’s campaign, and he has made that clear to the White House,” Cohen said.

President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 5, 2024. 

President Joe Biden began his campaign rally in Madison, Wisconsin, by wishing the crowd a happy Fourth of July and reiterating his plans to stay in the presidential race.

“You probably heard we had a little debate last week,” he said. “Can’t say it was my best performance. But ever since then, there’s been a lot of speculation. ‘What’s Joe going to do? Is he going to stay in the race? Is he going to drop out? What’s he going to do?’”

Biden spoke forcefully and was notably energetic throughout his speech, though he did have a couple of verbal slip-ups.

Jeff Martinson.

Some Biden supporters attending his Wisconsin rally say they have “concerns” about President Joe Biden leading the Democratic ticket in the wake of his debate performance – even as others say he’s up to the job.

Jeff Martinson, a supporter of the president in 2020, told CNN that he has “concerns” about the president’s ability to conduct a campaign. Martinson added that he hasn’t seen the president come out “forcefully enough to assert his capabilities” in past week after the president’s poor performance at CNN’s presidential debate. 

Another voter CNN spoke to said she thinks Biden is the “right man for the job” and does not think that he should step aside. 

“I think he’s the right man for the job,” Andrea Straus told CNN.

Shana Verstegen from Madison, Wisconsin, told CNN that she thought the debate was “hard to watch” and made “excuses” for the president. The fitness professional, who brought her kids to Friday’s rally, conceded that if the American people are feeling nervous, then she is a “little nervous too.” 

Rep. Gerry Connolly speaks to reporters in Washington, DC, in May 2023.

Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly of Virginia said on Friday that the next week will be “critical” and “very consequential” for President Joe Biden to put to rest — or not — the questions that have arisen since his debate performance.

Connolly said the next week will be “very telling,” and he thinks Biden has to show “mental acuity, mental alertness, humor, spontaneity.”

When asked if Biden gives the party the best shot to win in November, Connolly said, “I don’t think we know that yet. I think everybody is waiting for the dust to settle from the aftermath of the debate.”

Former President Donald Trump walks off stage after speaking at a rally in Chesapeake, Virginia, on June 28, 2024. 

For much of the past year, Donald Trump and his allies have speculated that Joe Biden would not end up as the Democratic presidential nominee – suggesting without evidence that he would step down before the convention and be replaced by another candidate.

Now, with Biden facing an increasingly uncertain political future amid the fallout from his shaky debate performance, Republicans are trying to determine what the Democratic incumbent stepping aside would actually mean for the Trump campaign. And some believe the path back to the White House would likely be easier with Biden at the top of the ticket.

Trump and his allies have relished the extended spotlight on Biden this week, with the former president making the rare decision to lay low at his New Jersey club and allow Biden to be the story. Trump has no public events on his schedule, and his campaign surprised some aides and advisers by telling them to enjoy the Fourth of July holiday.

Meanwhile, campaign advisers and key allies have been calling reporters and friendly Democrats, hunting for any clues into what might happen next should Biden ultimately walk away from his reelection bid.

Until now, the campaign and its allies have largely ignored Vice President Kamala Harris in waging their attacks against the Biden administration. But there are signs that posture is changing. On Wednesday, a super PAC aligned with Trump, MAGA, Inc., launched its opening salvo against Harris by attacking her oversight of Biden’s border policies in an email. It asked if Harris is “The Best They Got?”

Keep reading here about Trump’s strategy.

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey speaks to reporters on June 24, 2024, the two-year anniversary of the Dobbs decision which overturned Roe v. Wade.

Democratic Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey issued a statement Friday urging President Joe Biden to “carefully evaluate” whether he remains the Democratic Party’s best hope to defeat Donald Trump in the 2024 election.

“The best way forward right now is a decision for the President to make. Over the coming days, I urge him to listen to the American people and carefully evaluate whether he remains our best hope to defeat Donald Trump,” she added.

“Whatever President Biden decides, I am committed to doing everything in my power to defeat Donald Trump,” the governor continued.

Moments ago, President Biden arrived in Madison, Wisconsin, where he will appear at a campaign event before an evening interview with ABC News.

Biden met with Democratic governors at the White House earlier this week.

Activity continues to swirl in the many legal battles that former President Donald Trump faces. Attorneys for Trump are now seeking to use the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity decision to help him in his criminal case in Florida over mishandling of classified documents.

In a new court filing Friday, Trump’s team said they want an updated schedule in the federal classified documents case so they can argue points related to the Supreme Court decision.

The Supreme Court’s decision directly applies to the federal case over 2020 election subversion efforts in Washington, DC, but it could impact all four of the criminal cases against the former president. 

In the filing Friday, Trump’s attorneys also noted Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurrence to the decision, questioning the validity of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s appointment. His attorneys argue that Thomas “adds force” to motions Trump has filed against how Smith was appointed and funded.

CNN previously reported that Trump’s legal team planned to use this week’s Supreme Court opinion to try to get key evidence in the classified documents case tossed out, and Wednesday’s filing is the first step toward that end.  

The move is likely to further elongate an already convoluted and slow road to trial in Cannon’s courtroom in Fort Pierce, Florida. The judge has yet to decide a number of pretrial matters, including some motions that have been languishing on her docket for months. 

The White House defended President Joe Biden’s latest comments on his schedule, arguing that the president is trying to strike a balance.  

CNN previously reported that Biden told Democratic governors during a meeting at the White House this week that part of his plan going forward is to get more sleep and stop planning events after 8 p.m. 

Biden’s comment to the governors, which left some in the room frustrated, came as he tried to reassure allies on the heels of his halting debate performance last week. A Biden campaign aide argued that, as well as doing debate prep in the week after his two trips to Europe, Biden was engaged in hours of official work in addition to the hours of campaign work.

“He said he understands about striking the right balance,” Jean-Pierre said, when pressed if there will be a change in the future. “He is human, just like we all are, but it is a 24/7 job. It is 365 days a week that doesn’t change.” 

Amid questions about the president’s schedule, the Biden campaign announced what it cast as an “aggressive travel schedule” in July that includes visiting battleground states. 

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Friday that President Joe Biden had a “verbal check-in” with his doctor after repeatedly saying Wednesday that the president has had no medical exams since his February physical.

The admission comes after the president contradicted her public comments in a closed-door meeting with more than 20 Democratic governors. She cast Biden’s check-in as “a conversation” with his doctor, Kevin O’Connor. 

Jean-Pierre on Wednesday dismissed the question, telling briefing room reporters, “It’s a cold, guys. It’s a cold.” she said. “I know that it affects everybody differently. We’ve all had colds, and so no, he was not checked out by the doctor.”

She spoke broadly Friday about how Biden as president has “a medical unit around him 24/7,” as is standard procedure for all modern US presidents. 

President Lyndon B. Johnson tells a nationwide audience that he would not seek nor accept "the nomination of my party for another term as your president," on March 31, 1968.

President Joe Biden, who is dogged by questions about his acuity, has privately acknowledged that the next few days are a critical test of his reelection campaign, according to CNN’s reporting earlier this week.

He remains publicly defiant and insists he will remain in the race. But he would not be the first president to step aside rather than seek reelection if he ultimately makes that decision.

Most recently, in 1968, Lyndon B. Johnson shocked the country when he made the surprise announcement that he would not run at the end of an Oval Office speech on his plan to limit US military operations in Vietnam. Here’s part of that address:

With America’s sons in the fields far away, with America’s future under challenge right here at home, with our hopes and the world’s hopes for peace in the balance every day, I do not believe that I should devote an hour or a day of my time to any personal partisan causes or to any duties other than the awesome duties of this office – the Presidency of your country. Accordingly, I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your President.

Nearly 60 years old when he made that speech, Johnson looked much older. He would die of a sudden heart attack in 1973 at 64, before eligibility for retirement programs like Medicare, which he signed into law, and Social Security, which he expanded.

By the time he bowed out of the race, Johnson, unlike Biden, was facing multiple challenges for the Democratic nomination in the spring of 1968. Racial strife in the US, paired with a country fractured over the war in Vietnam, hurt Johnson’s popularity. In early 1968, the Tet offensive in Vietnam showed Communist forces there to be must stronger than the US military had claimed, and American casualties in the war mounted.

Read more about Johnson’s decision not to run for a second term.

When ABC News first secured its exclusive interview with President Joe Biden, the rollout plan was paint-by-numbers. But these are not normal times. So ABC accelerated its timing.

Anchor George Stephanopoulos is expected to interview Biden on Friday in Wisconsin, the president’s first extended interview with a major media network since his disastrous debate performance last week that has led many in the Democratic Party to question whether Biden should be the nominee.

ABC had originally planned to release clips Friday evening, and the whole interview would air during Stephanopoulos’ Sunday morning show, “This Week With George Stephanopoulos.”

Recognizing this extraordinary political moment, however, ABC News realized it would be uncomfortable to hold on to the interview for nearly two days, according to a source familiar with the matter. ABC may have been accused, fairly or not, of hiding something, and the news cycle is moving at a rapid pace.

A network source told CNN that because the story is of “national interest,” ABC decided to make it a “primetime special” to air the same day the interview is taking place. When ABC executives agreed to a time slot for the interview on Friday evening, they notified the White House and changed course, the source said.

The interview will air in its entirety on Friday evening at 8 p.m. ET, and a full transcript will be posted as well. The interview will be a critical opportunity for voters to be able to gauge Biden’s abilities in an unscripted, high-stakes setting. It’s not clear how long the interview will end up lasting, but ABC affiliates have it slated for a 30-minute special.

Read more on ABC’s interview here.

Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden debate at CNN's Atlanta studios on June 27, 2024.

President Joe Biden projected confidence ahead of a critical day for his political future, telling reporters, “Yes,” he can still beat former President Donald Trump in November. 

Asked whether he was ready for today, Biden offered a thumbs up before climbing the steps. He ignored a question about whether it was time for him to drop out. 

He waved at the top. 

Former President Donald Trump on Friday claimed he knew “nothing” about Project 2025, the sweeping policy plan and transition project run by the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation, but also said he disagreed with some parts of it.

The Biden campaign has been taking aim at Project 2025, which is a right-wing plan to dramatically overhaul and reshape the federal government. Project 2025 is not Trump’s official policy platform, and the Trump campaign has previously distanced itself from it and said that any outside groups do not speak for Trump and his campaign.

Sen. JD Vance and Sen. Marco Rubio.

The two Republican senators on Donald Trump’s shortlist for potential running mates may have to overcome some political baggage in the form of their home-state governors to get the nod.

If Trump picks either Marco Rubio of Florida or JD Vance of Ohio, the senator’s successor would be chosen by a Republican governor who has engaged in high-profile clashes with the former president.

In Florida, that honor would go to Gov. Ron DeSantis, a onetime ally viewed more recently by Trump as “disloyal” for launching a rival presidential campaign. If Vance is picked, his Ohio replacement would be appointed by Gov. Mike DeWine, who has rarely seen eye-to-eye with the former president.

It’s a fact that allies of Vance and Rubio are acutely aware of in the intensifying final days leading up to Trump’s announcement — and one they are trying to mitigate against by insisting the other senator has it worse. Pro-Rubio forces have suggested to those who will listen that DeWine would likely replace Vance with someone unaligned with Trump’s MAGA movement.

“It would be a step backwards for the America First agenda,” one such Rubio backer said in making the case against Vance.

Read more about the hurdles potential vice president candidates face.

Former President Donald Trump waves to the crowd at a campaign rally in Chesapeake, Virginia on June 28.

Most Americans think that former President Donald Trump will not concede if he loses the presidential election in November, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS. And despite the vast majority of Americans agreeing that the loser of an election has an obligation to accept the results and concede, only about half of registered voters see Trump’s false claims that he won the 2020 presidential election as a reason to vote against him in 2024.

A 78% majority of Americans say they think that President Joe Biden will accept the results and concede if he loses the election this November.

But roughly 7 in 10 Americans (71%) doubt that Trump will concede if he loses again in November, while only 28% believe he will. Half of Republicans now say they think Trump would concede a loss, up from 41% in a January poll taken amid the primary season. Among the public overall, doubts that Trump would concede are little changed from January, but remain heightened compared with October 2020, when a smaller 58% majority of US adults said they didn’t expect him to concede if he lost the 2020 election.

In CNN’s June presidential debate, Trump refused to state unequivocally that he would accept this year’s election results, twice deflecting the question before saying he would do so “if it’s a fair and legal and good election” and repeating claims about election fraud. There is no evidence of election fraud that would have altered the outcome of the 2020 election.

Read more about the poll here.

President Joe Biden’s team is telegraphing a strategy to put the president forth for more casual, unscripted events and an accelerated public schedule as he seeks to shift the narrative away from his poor debate performance.

Biden’s reelection campaign on Friday announced an “aggressive travel schedule” this month that will take him, the vice president, the first lady and the second gentleman to every battleground state following calls from allies to ramp up campaigning and public messaging efforts. In its announcement, the campaign said the president “can also be expected to engage in frequent off-the-cuff moments over the course of the month, as he has consistently throughout this campaign.”

The president’s reelection campaign will also launch a $50 million “paid media blitz” in July, including what it is calling “strategic investments” during events likely to draw a large swath of voters, such as the 2024 Olympics and the Republican National Convention. The media buys will focus on battleground state voters and include TV, radio and digital ads that the campaign says will focus on abortion, the economy and democracy, and signal the campaign’s ongoing efforts to reach voters through conventional methods.

The campaign says it’s looking to “capitalize on pivotal high viewership and political diverse audiences,” pointing to “The Bachelorette” season premiere and the Olympic Games’ popularity with Gen Z Americans. And there is the hope and expectation that Biden’s off-the-cuff moments reach audiences on social platforms.

Read the full story.

People watch the CNN presidential debate during a watch party at Union Pub in Washington, DC, on June 27.

If there’s one thing that American voters overwhelmingly agree on, it’s that this year’s presidential election presents a stark choice. In the latest CNN poll conducted by SSRS, 91% of registered voters say they see important differences between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, dwarfing even the 77% of voters who said last fall that there were significant divides between the Democratic and Republican parties. Even among the so-called “double haters” – those with unfavorable views of both Biden and Trump – only 20% say that the two candidates are pretty much the same.

To get a broader image of how voters view the stakes of the election, CNN asked voters to name the single most important difference they saw between the two candidates. As the results highlight, the contrasts that most stick in voters’ minds are often not about policy issues at all. While some voters mentioned the topics that often top voters’ lists this year when asked to pick their most important issues – the economy, immigration or a commitment to democracy – others were more focused on character and personal traits, with honesty, ability to handle the job and perceived motivations among the traits most mentioned as distinguishing factors.

Among those who saw significant differences between Biden and Trump, the most frequently mentioned distinctions were honesty and integrity (17%), ability to handle the job or mental fitness (15%), love for the country or patriotism (10%), perceived self-serving or egotistical motivations (10%) and effectiveness or performance in office (8%). Another 8% talked about protecting democracy or the Constitution, with 7% mentioning immigration and 6% the economy. Voters’ answers to the questions often spanned multiple topics, and a not insignificant share offered vaguer answers, with some simply noting that each candidate’s beliefs or policies were different.

Read more about what the polling data shows.

President Joe Biden speaks to to the media at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 1.

The ABC News interview with President Joe Biden will now air “in its entirety as a primetime special” on Friday evening at 8 p.m. ET, the network announced Wednesday evening.

The high-profile interview will be the first televised interview the president is expected to participate in since his poor showing at last week’s CNN presidential debate.

The first clip will still air on “World News Tonight” on Friday evening.

Biden will be interviewed by ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on the campaign trail earlier in the day and ABC News says a transcript of the unedited interview will also be made available on Friday.

CNN’s MJ Lee reported Wednesday that the president privately acknowledged the next stretch of days is critical (including the president’s interview with ABC) to whether he can save his reelection bid, making clear to an ally that he understands what would prompt him to accept: “It’s just not working.”

Originally, ABC said it would air parts of Stephanopoulos’ interview with Biden on Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET on “World News Tonight with David Muir.” The extended interview would have aired Sunday on “This Week with George Stephanopoulos.”

At last week’s debate, Biden struggled to complete sentences at times and often looked lost as former President Donald Trump pumped out falsehoods, urgently raising questions about Biden’s age and ability to serve a second term.

CNN’s Hadas Gold contributed reporting to this post.

President Joe Biden speaks at a post-debate campaign rally on June 28 in Raleigh, North Carolina.

As President Joe Biden prepares for his primetime interview Friday, Biden campaign officials are managing expectations, acknowledging the president’s frequent verbal missteps, while also recognizing the stakes are high. 

CNN previously reported that advisers were weighing a high-profile interview in hopes of showing that Biden’s energetic North Carolina rally the day after debate was not simply a fluke. 

But the campaign is clear-eyed that the president has long been prone to verbal slips and diversions. Close observers have noted that Biden’s speech and delivery have lost some pacing, crispness, and focus in the years since he took office.  

Friday marks a critical test of whether Biden can demonstrate his fitness and capacity to serve another four years, and aides acknowledge that Biden’s performance in the ABC interview, which will tape Friday afternoon and air in the evening, will be highly scrutinized. 

While limited, the president’s previous interviews have often been focused on domestic policy and foreign policy. This interview will likely strike a different tone, focused squarely on his viability as a candidate. 

Vice President Kamala Harris looks on during a campaign event at Girard College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on May 29.

Amid the ongoing fallout from Joe Biden’s debate performance, talk in many top Democratic circles has already moved to who Kamala Harris’ running mate would be.

That’s how certain a widening group of leading party officials, operatives and donors are that the president’s slow start to salvage his campaign just won’t work, with several close allies skeptical that he is up to the reelection campaign he has pledged to stay in, based on CNN’s conversations with two dozen Democratic politicians and operatives.

Biden always says not to compare him to the almighty, but to the alternative. That’s exactly what a growing number of Democrats looking at Harris are doing.

For her part, the vice president and her staff have deliberately ignored most of the calls and texts coming their way, remaining insistently on message about both her support for Biden and her pride in sticking with him.

But Harris has already made some changes: Only after last week’s debate did her office update her schedule to put her with Biden for the Fourth of July picnic and fireworks. She has not attended the picnic before, instead keeping to her own Independence Day tradition of making a stop at a local fire station. And after Democratic governors rejected the White House’s initial offer to have her speak to them instead of Biden, she was also added to the meeting and closed it with a speech urging unity and sticking with the president.

That’s her keeping close to Biden — but it’s also Biden keeping her close.

Despite her efforts, Democratic politics has started to reshape around her — as has former President Donald Trump’s campaign, which has already begun attacking Harris.

Several officials told CNN they have begun chiding donors who complain that they don’t think she can win, arguing that they need to stop and get on board with her. Other officials and advisers said plans are underway to convince Biden to immediately throw his support behind Harris, release his Democratic delegates and ask them to follow his choice. Former presidents and party leaders would then follow suit, they believe, in hopes of avoiding a contentious fight to lead the Democratic ticket.

Read the full story.

President Joe Biden attends a ceremony at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 3. 

When dozens of world leaders convene in Washington, DC, for the NATO 75th anniversary summit next week, they won’t only be looking to underscore the unity of the alliance — they will also be carefully watching US President Joe Biden after his poor debate performance last week.

Biden’s showing at the CNN presidential debate was met with shock and concern by diplomats around the world. Now, the president will be under immense pressure to perform well at the high-stakes gathering and show that he is still a viable competitor to former President Donald Trump, multiple diplomats told CNN.

The concern is compounded because many believe Trump poses a threat to the future of NATO. He publicly railed against the alliance during his first term in office and did so again recently on the campaign trail, even going as far as suggesting Russia “do whatever the hell they want” to members who don’t meet defense spending targets.

One former senior US diplomat said, there will “certainly be a spotlight” on Biden at the NATO summit.

Biden will “undoubtedly” be feeling the pressure to perform well, the former diplomat said.

Read the full story.

President Joe Biden President Biden speaks to local supporters and volunteers at the office opening of the Wisconsin coordinated campaign headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on March 13.

President Joe Biden will lead an “aggressive travel schedule” in July that will take him, the vice president, first lady, and second gentlemen to every battleground state, his reelection campaign said.

That announcement comes as the president faces questions about his political future and fitness for office after his poor performance at last week’s CNN presidential debate. 

Several Biden allies have publicly called on the president to accelerate his public schedule, including sitting for more interviews and participating in more unscripted moments, as he looks to convince voters and top officials in his own party that he’s up for a second term.

The ramped-up travel schedule will begin after the president spends next week in Washington, DC, for the NATO summit. 

While the Republican National Convention is underway, the president is expected to deliver remarks at two conferences in the battleground state of Nevada as he looks to appeal to Black and Latino voters amid some signs of lagging support with the two key constituencies even prior to the debate.

The campaign also said the president would continue his push into “critical blue wall states” in July. The campaign said the president will try to engage in “frequent off-the-cuff moments” this month and focus on interviews with “national, local, and constituency media,” including Black and Latino outlets.

Several of the president’s allies have encouraged him to ramp up his campaigning and public messaging efforts to show voters he’s up for continuing in the presidential race.

Every time things look like they can’t get worse for President Joe Biden, they seem to do just that.

The Fourth of July holiday brought no respite after Biden’s disastrous debate performance, which raised concerns about his capacity to serve a second term and pitched his reelection campaign into an existential crisis.

And the scrutiny will only increase on Friday with the airing of an ABC interview that will provide a critical test of the president’s ability to stem panic in the Democratic Party exactly four months from Election Day.

The latest effort by the White House to quell the controversy is already disintegrating. The New York Times and CNN reported Thursday that the president had told Democratic state governors that he needed more sleep and that he’d no longer schedule events after 8 p.m., three sources briefed on the comments said. His reasoning frustrated several governors who’d come to the White House to seek reassurance about Biden’s condition, sources said. And it is likely to raise further questions about whether the president is fit to fully execute the duties of the presidency now, let alone toward the end of a second term, when he would be 86. Biden’s comment may also infuriate Democrats who want him to be far more visible and to throw himself into spontaneous, unscripted events to prove his stamina and sharpness.

But Biden issued another defiant warning that he has no intention of stepping down, a day after several allies privately said he’s aware that the coming days could be critical for his hopes of staying in the race. “I’m not going anywhere,” Biden told military families gathered to watch July Fourth fireworks at the White House.

Read the full analysis.

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden appear at a campaign event at in Raleigh, North Carolina, on June 28.

President Joe Biden told Democratic governors during a meeting at the White House on Wednesday that part of his plan going forward is to stop scheduling events after 8 p.m. so that he could get more sleep, according to three sources briefed on his comments. 

The remarks came as the 81-year-old Biden sought to reassure a group of more than 20 state leaders about his ability to defeat former President Donald Trump in November and govern effectively for another four years.

The comment left several of the governors in the room frustrated, sources told CNN, and is one of the reasons that some of the participants have been rankled by the statement of loyalty and enthusiasm from them distributed by the Biden campaign on Thursday.

The White House and the Biden campaign did not immediately comment about what the president said. 

The New York Times was first to report Biden’s comments to the governors.

Former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Chesapeake, Virginia, on June 28.

Former President Donald Trump on Thursday attacked President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in his Fourth of July message on Truth Social. 

Trump called Harris “Laffin’ Kamala Harris,” and said she was “our potential new Democrat Challenger,” after Biden’s world was thrown into chaos following the president’s shaky debate performance. 

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, flanked by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, speaks to repoters after meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 3.

Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz said Wednesday that President Joe Biden is “fit for office,” following a meeting with the president as he looks to ease fears about his ability to lead the country and take on Donald Trump in November.

“Yes, fit for office,” the governor said in response to a question from a reporter, shortly after the closed door meeting between Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and nearly every Democratic governor in the country.

“None of us are denying Thursday night was a bad performance. It was a bad hit, if you will on that, but it doesn’t impact what I believe: He’s delivering.”

The vote of confidence comes as Biden has faced increasing pressure and questions from some within his own party over the viability of his presidential campaign. Some Democratic lawmakers have voiced concern and called for him to step aside as the presumptive Democratic nominee amid fears that Biden remaining at the top of the ticket could risk the party’s chances of keeping the White House and winning back control of the House.

The meeting between Biden and the dozens of state leaders followed a call held by Walz earlier in the week in which some governors expressed surprise that they had not heard from Biden about his disastrous debate performance.

Three of the Democratic governors — Walz, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul — addressed reporters outside the White House, underscoring that they stood behind the president.

Moore, largely considered to be a rising star in the Democratic Party, described the meeting as “honest” and “candid” as the governors shared concerns with the president.

Read more about Biden’s meeting with the governors.

President Joe Biden participates in a debate at CNN's Atlanta studios on June 27.

President Joe Biden has privately acknowledged that the next stretch of days are critical to whether he can save his reelection bid for president, making clear to an ally Tuesday that he understands what would prompt him to accept: “It’s just not working.”

“He sees the moment. He’s clear-eyed,” this person told CNN.

There is no ambiguity for the president about what potential series of events in the coming weeks would ultimately prompt him to acknowledge that his attempt to make amends for last week’s disastrous debate on CNN aren’t working, according to this ally.

It would be a scenario in which “the polls are plummeting, the fundraising is drying up, and the interviews are going badly,” they said. “He’s not oblivious.”

In response to a request for comment, White House spokesman Andrew Bates said that “it is false to suggest there is any openness to ending the campaign.”

In the days since Biden’s stunningly halting debate showing, Democrats across the country have expressed grave concern. Some elected officials have even begun to publicly call on Biden to drop out for the good of the party.

The New York Times reported separately on Wednesday that Biden acknowledged that he may not be able to save his campaign if he does not perform well in public events over the next several days. The White House and Biden’s campaign have denied that reporting.

In Tuesday’s private conversation, Biden was also “chastened” as he “blamed himself” – not his staff – for the debate performance.

Read more of this reporting here.

Young voters could help shape the 2024 election.

If you’re a younger voter, CNN wants to hear your thoughts on what issues are driving you to the polls and what you care about ahead of the election

Share your experiences with us in the form below and we may follow up for a CNN story:

A customer shops at a Target store in Miami on May 20.

Americans have been dealing with above-average — and, for a good stretch, decades-high — inflation for going on three years now. The strong and resilient job market helped households stay afloat, contributed to continued spending and kept a recession at bay; however, pervasive and prolonged inflation has sapped away precious dollars and worn down people’s psyches in the process.

Economy top voters’ concerns: And in an election year, those effects are top of mind for voters and factored heavily into Thursday night’s first presidential debate, with both candidates blaming the other for causing inflation. (In short: The causes of the run-up in inflation were far more complex and global in nature while both the Trump and Biden administrations’ stimulus efforts have been said to play a part as well).

Inflation trending lower: But there’s been some more good news for price-wary Americans: Inflation has been on a downward trajectory recently, and on Friday, new data from the Commerce Department showed that the pace of price hikes slowed even more in May and are getting even closer to normal.

The May Personal Consumption Expenditures price index — a closely watched inflation gauge that the Federal Reserve uses for its 2% target — showed that prices were unchanged from April and slowed to 2.6% for the 12 months ended in May from 2.7% the month before, according to Commerce Department data released Friday.

The report also showed that consumer spending (a critical economic engine) increased for the month while people’s incomes and savings grew.

A separate report from the University of Michigan showed that consumer sentiment held largely steady in June along with a sharp improvement in Americans’ optimism that inflation will continue to cool in the near-term.

President Joe Biden departs after speaking to the media following the Supreme Court's ruling on charges against former President Donald Trump that he sought to subvert the 2020 election, at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 1.

Joe Biden’s spotty debate performance immediately triggered new questions from worried Democrats about whether he would leave the presidential race.

It would not be an easy process since Biden is already the Democrats’ presumptive nominee and the overwhelming choice of primary voters. He faced little opposition during the primary season, and the fact that he won nearly all of the party’s delegates means it’s very unlikely he’d be forced out of the race against his will.

As we first wrote back in February, if the leading candidate was to drop out of the campaign after most primaries or even during the convention, individual delegates would need to select the party’s nominee on the convention floor (or, potentially, during a virtual roll call).

You can assume, for instance, that Vice President Kamala Harris would be a top contender to be on the ballot in such a scenario. But there would be other potential candidates who previously argued they could run a more effective campaign against former President Donald Trump.

Would someone like California Gov. Gavin Newsom – who offered unqualified support for Biden in the wake of Thursday’s debate – challenge Harris at the convention? Settling on a replacement could be divisive and ugly. It would be up to the delegates to decide, in a series of votes after frantic lobbying, who to pick.

Read more on what would happen if Biden decided to leave the race.