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U.S. President Joe Biden rubs his nose while greeting shoppers inside Mario's Westside Market grocery store in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., July 16, 2024.
As Republicans listened to speeches from Donald Trump Jr. and Vice Presidential candidate JD Vance at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last night, news was leaking that top Democrats are pressuring President Joe Biden to step aside and make way for a different candidate.
The leaks say that Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have privately urged Biden to step aside because opinion polls show him trailing Donald Trump. Earlier in the day, Rep. Adam Schiff, a close ally of Pelosi, publicly called for Biden to “pass the torch.” It looks like their offices leaked the news to multiple outlets when he didn’t heed their private warnings, a sign that Democrats have decided they have to push him out or lose to Trump.
To make matters worse, Biden has contracted COVID, drawing attention to his frail health at a key moment in the campaign – but could this provide an excuse for a graceful exit from the race? The New York Times is reporting that Biden has become “more receptive” to arguments that he should step aside.
Meanwhile, Republicans listened to Vance deliver a populist speech aimed at working-class voters whose support is key to the Rust Belt states where Trump is currently leading Biden in the polls. Biden is currently on track to lose decisively in November, which explains why Democrats look determined to force him out. In the days ahead, we will see if Trump gets a convention bounce in the polls. Ironically, a big bounce might give the Democrats the argument they need to dump Biden, which could be bad news for the Republicans.