From CNN’s MJ Lee and Dana Bash
President Joe Biden’s high command is projecting a determination to press forward with the president’s reelection campaign, even as Democrats’ public calls on Biden to drop out of the race grow by the day.
Those calls were joined Sunday by independent Sen. Joe Manchin, who echoed other lawmakers in encouraging Biden to “pass the torch” to a new generation of leadership.
But when the co-chairs of the president’s campaign held a call Saturday, there was no discussion at all of the president leaving the race, sources said. Among those on the call was Rep. Jim Clyburn, who on Sunday told CNN that Democrats need to look for ways to “coalesce” around Biden.
Some background: CNN reported Thursday night that senior-most West Wing advisers have not discussed — among themselves or with the president — the possibility of Biden abandoning his candidacy. A senior adviser told CNN that still remained true as of Sunday afternoon.
But in interviews with CNN, more than two dozen sources familiar with the dynamics inside the West Wing and campaign said there is now privately widespread acceptance that Biden remaining in the 2024 race is wholly untenable.
The president has been isolating at his home in Rehoboth Beach as he recovers from Covid-19. His longtime aide Steve Ricchetti is among the advisers in Delaware this weekend, per a White House official.
More from Biden’s team: Biden campaign co-chair Cedric Richmond reiterated Sunday that the president intends to accept the Democratic nomination and see his reelection bid through.
CNN’s Ebony Davis contributed reporting to this post.
