The Democratic Party’s plot to force Joe Biden to retire has been brewing for some time, a source close to Biden says.
That plan became reality on Sunday, when the 81-year-old president dramatically announced the end of his campaign before endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris.
But a source close to Biden’s family says the party staged a “palace coup” over the past few weeks, and the president fought it until he was threatened with being forced to resign.
The source claims that the disastrous debate against Donald Trump on June 27 – the first presidential debate in history – was part of the strategy, despite having been publicly requested by Biden on social media.
“That debate was a setup to convince Democrats that he couldn’t run for president,” the source said. The New York Post.
The Democratic Party’s plot to force Joe Biden out of the race has been brewing for some time, a source close to Biden says
The 81-year-old president dramatically announced the end of his campaign before endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris on Sunday.
Biden was often seen on split screen with his mouth open and a blank stare during the showdown with Trump last month, immediately sparking panic among Democrats.
Although most of the faces on the left publicly supported Biden, behind the scenes the powerful people in the party threatened to invoke the 25th Amendment.
Section 4 of the amendment allows for the removal of a president who is deemed incapacitated by any type of mental illness, injury or impairment.
One of the few Biden trusted who believed he was being pushed out was his troubled son Hunter, who became his father’s guardian after the debate.
“Hunter felt like he was being framed and was very worried about his father. These people, these officials, were not on Joe’s side,” the source said.
They also said it might not be a direct path to the nomination for Harris, despite Biden’s endorsement.
The source said Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona may be a popular choice among delegates, although the former astronaut has already endorsed Harris.
Once Biden was finally officially convinced to leave, everything moved at lightning speed.
A source close to the debate says the disastrous June 27 debate against Donald Trump – the earliest presidential debate in history – was part of the strategy, despite being publicly requested by Biden on social media.
Jill Biden has been with husband Joe Biden in Rehoboth as he makes his decision on the 2024 presidential run; above the couple at their beach house in February.
He was in COVID isolation at his $3.4 million vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, when his dwindling inner circle handed him polling data showing he could no longer beat Donald Trump.
That’s when they drafted a letter saying it was time for him to step aside for the good of the future of the Democratic Party.
Donors had pulled millions of dollars in funding, the list of Democrats telling him to drop out grew by the day and polls suggested his chances of beating Donald Trump were dwindling after his disastrous debate performance.
Biden had previously He insisted that he would only step aside if he was shown polls showing Kamala Harris would perform better than him against Trump, or if she developed a “medical condition.” In the end, it was the former that sealed his fate.
Biden went to sleep Saturday night at the beach house, knowing he would announce his bombshell the next day.
At 1:45 p.m. on Sunday, he began calling his senior staff at the White House and on the campaign trail.
By then he had already told Harris and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
At 1:46 p.m., his campaign account posted a letter from the president announcing his decision even as he was still on the staff call.
Anthony Bernal, Jill Biden’s senior adviser, and Annie Tomasini, her deputy chief of staff, leave the White House together in February: He runs the East Wing; she runs the West Wing.
Biden announced his historic decision to step aside in a one-page letter to X where he pledged to complete his term, but he did not fully endorse Vice President Kamala Harris as his replacement until a follow-up social media post.
Most of his staff, both in the White House and on the campaign trail, were shocked. They heard the news online and found out when the @JoeBiden account posted the president’s letter.
It was the final straw in a chaotic 48 hours for the Biden family, who hunkered down behind their patriarch with a small inner circle of former aides supporting them. Some even informed Jill Biden about staffers they deemed disloyal.
Meanwhile, Biden has gone from being angry at the pressure from his party to accepting the situation.
And once his final decision was made on Saturday night, the rest moved quickly.
Biden called Harris directly to tell her the news.
He also reportedly held personal conversations with White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients and campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon. He also spoke with his cabinet, members of Congress, governors and supporters.
But it all happened so fast that many employees were hurt by the way they heard the news, even if it did not surprise them.
Harris then announced that she would run for the Democratic presidential nomination.