Hiding President Joe Biden’s apparent mental decline from the public for the next four months has turned out to be a losing strategy in the wake of a disastrous first presidential debate.
It was seemingly the beginning of the end, and now, it looks like Biden’s political career is facing an abrupt and unprecedented end.
In both the public and political spheres, the fallout was initially sparked by Biden’s worrying performance at the June 27 debate.
Many are calling for Biden to be replaced as the topper of the Democrat 2024 ticket, but the problems and outward pressure don’t end there.
A halt in funding to the president’s reelection campaign is already underway from a growing cohort of major donors, and the once-minor problem is now becoming a sizable issue.
According to The Washington Post, the defeatism is now percolating at the highest levels of the campaign.
“Overwhelmingly a majority of senior campaign staff are despondent and don’t see a path,” a Democratic strategist told the Post in the Wednesday report.
It’s likely these senior staffers are simply seeing the writing on the wall — among the campaign’s many problems, defections of Biden’s supporter are likely to grow into one of the final nails in Biden’s political coffin.
Many Democratic lawmakers and donors are reportedly waiting until Biden’s part in an ongoing NATO summit is over before opening a public call for Biden to drop out.
Will Democrats replace Biden as the party’s nominee?
Yes: 73% (29 Votes)
No: 27% (11 Votes)
The apparently impending defection of these supporters will only compound a problem Biden has been facing since the debate.
Prominent Democrat donors, including Walt Disney Co. heiress Abigail Disney, have halted funding to the Biden campaign until he is replaced.
This initial round of defections cleared donors who were responsible for tens of millions in contributions to Democrats.
Democratic Senator Peter Welch is among the highest in the Democratic Party to officially call for Biden to withdraw from the 2024 election.
“We cannot unsee President Biden’s disastrous debate performance,” Welch wrote. “We cannot ignore or dismiss the valid questions raised since that night.
“For the good of the country, I’m calling on President Biden to withdraw from the race.”
With more lawmakers and Democrat power players seemingly set to turn on Biden, the party must begin to seriously consider who would replace the 81-year-old candidate at the head of the presidential ticket.
Who Democrats choose will have to both rally major donors and build a competitive campaign against former President Donald Trump in a matter of mere months.
To make matters worse for the party, choosing anyone but Biden’s running mate Vice President Kamala Harris would mean starting from scratch, as she is the only candidate able to inherit both the campaign finances and its existing infrastructure.
Democrats can still choose to stick with Biden as their nominee, but it seems they would only be flirting with disaster as November rapidly approaches.
