Biden’s disastrous day dashes Democrats’ hopes of moving forward

Perhaps the most devastating argument against Joe Biden’s reelection comes not from politicians or pundits, but from movie stars.

But George Clooney wasn’t the only one speaking out, writing a scathing op-ed in The New York Times . Democrats are increasingly vocal, dashing the president’s hopes of a stable campaign this week — and possibly ever.

This all comes after the president appeared to have turned the corner, with the influential Congressional Black Caucus and leading liberal members of Congress just voicing their support for him.

But now things have changed again – and it’s all happening on the sidelines of a high-profile NATO summit in Washington with U.S. allies.

On Wednesday night, Vermont’s Peter Welch became the first Democratic senator to publicly call on Biden to withdraw, “for the good of the country,” as he wrote in a newspaper op-ed.

The drumbeat of defections makes it even more risky for Biden to hold a press conference at the end of a NATO summit on Thursday afternoon. It will be the biggest impromptu test for him since his botched debate two weeks ago sparked the crisis.

Biden is also scheduled to hold a sit-down interview with NBC News host Lester Holt on Monday. Missteps or missteps in the coming days could bolster Mr. Clooney, the top Democratic fundraiser, in His New York Times article.

The actor writes that the president’s decline is not an illusion; it is real. He mentioned the Los Angeles fundraiser he hosted for the president last month. “The Joe Biden I attended a fundraiser with three weeks ago is not the Joe Biden of 2010,” he wrote. “He’s not even the Joe Biden of 2020. He’s the same guy we saw in the debate.”

Clooney went on to say that the president is not up to the task of defeating Donald Trump in November. He called the Biden campaign’s claims that he was the choice of Democratic primary voters “disingenuous at best.” And, perhaps most devastatingly, he says every prominent Democrat he’s spoken to knows all this — whether they want to admit it publicly or not.

“We can bury our heads in the sand and pray for a miracle in November,” he wrote, “or we can tell the truth.”

The Biden campaign is rebutting Cloney’s article, noting that the president flew across nine time zones from the G7 summit in Italy to attend the star’s fundraiser.

Campaign officials also pointed to the president’s recent deep disagreements with the star and his wife, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney, over his administration’s Gaza policy. This opinion piece, published three weeks after the Los Angeles fundraiser, could be seen as a strike for maximum effect.

But Clooney is no ordinary movie star. He has been a powerful fundraiser for the Democratic Party for years. Cloney’s comments pose a very real threat to Biden, given that California, and the Hollywood industry in particular, is a significant part of the party’s funding base.

It comes after other big Democratic donors, including Netflix Chairman Reed Hastings and IAC Chairman Barry Diller, also expressed displeasure.

The actor was also involved in party politics and was close to former President Barack Obama. It’s hard to imagine him taking to the pages of the New York Times in such dramatic fashion to launch a two-pronged attack on a sitting president, without at least the tacit approval of prominent Democrats.

Trump immersed himself in the Democratic turmoil Wednesday night, posting on social media about Clooney: “He’s attacking Crooked Joe like a rat.”

A growing number of prominent Democrats are saying things that should give Mr. Biden pause.

“For too long, we’ve asked President Biden to do so much for so many people,” Senator Welch said in an op-ed in the Washington Post.

“It takes unparalleled selflessness and courage. We need him to put us first, just as he has done before. I urge him to do that now.”

Earlier in the day, just hours before Cloney and Welch published their op-ed, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — who still wields considerable influence in the party — notably stopped short of endorsing Biden’s re-election bid .

She said the president’s critics should remain silent ahead of this week’s NATO summit. “Whatever you’re thinking,” she said, “you don’t have to put it on the table until we see how it goes this week.”

She added that Mr. Biden should make a quick decision on whether to continue running. She sidestepped when asked about the president, who has made it clear he will remain in the race. “I hope he does whatever he decides to do,” Mrs. Pelosi said.

Later in the day, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, Hillary Clinton’s 2016 vice presidential running mate, made similar remarks about how the president would ” Do patriotic things for your country” and “make decisions.”

Washington Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, put it more bluntly: “I fully support him as our nominee until he is not our nominee.”

It’s as if Mr. Biden’s tepid supporters simply won’t accept “Yes, I’m still running” as an answer.

Meanwhile, even some of Biden’s staunchest supporters are beginning to imagine “what-if” scenarios. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he still supports the president and will not run against Vice President Kamala Harris as the nominee if Biden steps down.

Senate Democrats will meet with Biden campaign officials on Thursday to discuss the future of the campaign. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he would discuss Democratic concerns directly with the president by Friday.

The wheels are turning, but it’s unclear whether they are working toward a solution or spinning in circles.

If Biden withdraws, it’s unclear what will happen next. Some believe Ms. Harris, who is the president’s running mate, will be next in line.

Clooney said the solution is for Democrats to regroup and elect a new nominee, although he was vague about how that process would unfold. His suggestion that, with the shortened campaign season, whoever the party chooses will be able to avoid opposition research and negative campaigning — whether from fellow Democrats or fellow Republicans — seems extremely naive.

Although sentiment against the president has taken a new turn in Washington over the past 24 hours, the mathematics of his situation have not changed.

Biden still controls a majority of the delegates to the national convention, who ultimately decide the party’s presidential election. While these representatives have no explicit obligation to support him, he can replace anyone who appears to be less than loyal.

Polls, while showing him trailing Trump, have not changed significantly since his ill-fated debate. There is little indication that his most obvious replacements — the vice president and prominent Democratic governor — have fared much better.

Even Biden’s critics, who appeal to Trump’s patriotism, responsibility and concern for American democracy amid a possible re-election as president, implicitly acknowledge that the decision ultimately rests with him.

What Wednesday proved, however, is that if he moves forward, he may never fully shake off concerns about his age.

His debate performance may end up being a self-inflicted wound that will never heal.