Welcome to the online version of From the policy deskevening bulletin that brings you the latest reporting and analysis from the campaign trail, the White House and Capitol Hill from the NBC News Politics team.
In today’s edition, we report on how the walls are closing amid mounting pressure for President Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 race. Plus, Chief Political Correspondent Jonathan Allen looks at Donald Trump’s remaining power as he prepares to retake the Republican presidential nomination.
Programming note: After the Republican National Convention wraps up tonight, tune in for a special edition of From the Policy Desk, bringing you the latest news and analysis from our team in Milwaukee.
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Biden’s world is bracing for the possibility of the president stepping aside
By Natasha Korecki, Carol E. Lee, and Monica Alba
President Joe Biden’s political world is falling apart. His best allies have either publicly or privately urged him to step down. Huge donations fell off the cliff. Grassroots fundraising does not meet the demands of a campaign that needs to be aggressively expanded three months before the presidential election. Members have their own re-election attempt already announced he has no path to victory.
Since a disastrous debate in Atlanta three weeks ago changed the trajectory of his campaign, Biden has repeatedly tried to dig him out of power.
But even among the president’s staunchest domestic backers, who now believe the writing is on the wall, it feels like the ground is shifting beneath him, according to five people with knowledge of the situation.
“We’re nearing the end,” said a person close to Biden.
The man, who previously doubted Biden would ever step aside, acknowledged it was still the president’s decision, but joined the ranks of Biden allies who say he is nearing a tipping point.
Rep. Adam Schiff, who is running for California Senate on Wednesday, made a remarkable public appeal the president’s withdrawal from the nomination is a move that exposes other Democratic leaders, including Reps. Hakeem Jeffries and Nancy Pelosiand Senator Chuck Schumer — caused serious concernsThe president, who is supported by the vote, risked taking control of Congress with him if he stayed on the same path.
Hours after last weekend’s assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, some Democrats said they were calling for, or even fearing, Biden’s resignation. “It would have been frozen” as the president deals with a national crisis. But that passed quickly. Some allies now say the shooting, which has fueled an even more intense rally around Trump within his party, makes it even clearer that Biden’s cognitive decline will not win the White House.
A person with knowledge of the projections said the Biden campaign now expects to raise only 25% of the major donor money it plans to raise in July. this is a lower level From last week’s expectation that big-dollar fundraising was down 50%. This man said that the money “dried up”.
A Democratic lawmaker said on Wednesday that if Biden does not agree to step aside, the cacophony of calls will grow louder and more lawmakers will urge him to do so. The MP called it a “sad moment” for the party.
Where Obama stands: NBC News correspondents Monica Alba, Yamiche Alcindor and Sahil Kapoor on former President Barack Obama Biden has “concerns” about his ability to remain at the top of the ticket, but continues to see him play a key role as a voting council and adviser to his former vice president.
Team Biden Counter: A source close to Biden pushed back against concerns raised by senior Democrats.
“Can we all remember for a minute that the same people who tried to oust Joe Biden are the same people who literally gave us all Donald Trump? In 2015, Obama, Pelosi, Schumer pushed Biden aside in favor of Hillary [Clinton]; they were wrong then, and they are wrong now,” the source said Mike Memoli told NBC News.
Potential next steps: What if Biden eventually steps aside? NBC News’ Ben Kamisar and Jiachuan Wu describe the next steps The Democratic Party could buy.
From defeat to dominance: How Trump rose to the top of the Republican Party
By Jonathan Allen
MILWAUKEE — Save for the tip of your ear, Donald Trump dodged a bullet Saturday. Then he stood up. The once-and-maybe-future president pumped his fist in the air, his right cheek bleeding and his lips drawn.
In just a few frames, the most terrifying moment of the 2024 presidential election—a near-failed assassination attempt—became a visual metaphor for the longer arc of Trump’s rise from the depths of political ignominy to the edge of America’s most powerful perch. politics.
The anti-establishment outsider, who thumbed his nose at political norms, made his comeback by implementing more traditional and practical politics.
His emphasis on “unity” at the Republican National Convention this week is no sign of a turnaround. Instead, it’s the worn-out slogan of candidates who believe they’ve won—it leaves the trailing opponent between the rock of agreeing not to fight and risking blame for any dissent.
Trump has promised that he will not “stop the defense” in this election – he will not sit on the lead and try to run out the clock. But he did just that, skipping the Republican primary debates, stepping into the shadows to focus on Biden’s struggle in recent weeks, and conducting the vice presidential search with the candidate he traditionally started: Sen. JD Vance of Ohio.
It remains to be seen whether Trump will ascend to the top of the Oval Office again, but his resurgence already ranks among the most improbable displays of political staying power in American history.
🗞️ The best stories of the day
- ➕ Covid update: According to the White House doctor, Biden is “still experiencing mild upper respiratory symptoms” as he deals with Covid, but he has no fever and his vital signs are normal. More →
- 🎟️ Split ticket: Democratic candidates are trying to outdo Biden in Senate races in key battleground states, but ticket-splitting voters are a dwindling breed, NBC News’ Sahil Kapoor reports from Michigan. More →
- ⚫ Shooting result: Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle met with Trump on Tuesday three days after the shooting at the former president’s Pennsylvania rally.
- 🎥 Lights, camera, movement: Vance closed his speech to the Evangelical group this morning with a quote from Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction. More →
That’s all for the Policy Desk for now. If you have feedback – like it or not – email us politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com
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