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Joe Biden should bow out. Is he ready to listen to the Democratic Party’s leaders?

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July 19 update: Either I missed this, or it appeared after I drafted my post: Jon Tester has called on President Biden not to seek another term.

There were quite a few developments since I posted yesterday:

Adam Schiff publicly called for Joe Biden to bow out, followed by a public report of an earlier appeal by Jamie Raskin.

Congressional leaders have approached Biden in private to urge him to bow out. Now these conversations with Nancy Pelosi, Hakeem Jeffries, and Chuck Schumer have been confirmed via the media.

An AP/NORC poll revealed that only 34% of Democrats believe Biden should continue running for president. Sixty-five percent believe he should withdraw in favor of someone else.

This is the last day of the Republican National Convention, when Democrats' focus should be on the scary agenda coming out of the MAGA world. Instead, it is on Biden. This is because the president's frailties are on display every day, reminding a majority of voters why they believe he is too old to run for another term.

The president showing his age as he does daily (though he just tested positive for COVID).
The president can't remember the name of his Secretary of Defense.

Democrats -- determined to run an all-out campaign to prevent another Trump term -- can't afford daily distractions about their nominee's age and age-related infirmities. Nor can they afford a nominee who is incapable of waging that all-out campaign.

The decision of Congressional Democrats to go public with their doubts and entreaties represents an unprecedented effort to convince a recalcitrant candidate to bow out.

There is no guarantee that another candidate -- Kamala Harris, a prominent governor, or any other Democratic leader -- can beat Trump. (I assume Harris will most likely head the ticket if Biden steps aside. She will be subject to attack in virtue of being a woman with a Black/Asian heritage. Hers will be a tough hill to climb. So be it.) At least a younger, more vigorous candidate -- whoever it is -- will have the stamina to run a strenuous, day-in, day-out campaign without raising doubts about being too frail to govern until January 2029.

The Democratic (and small-d democratic) coalition needs a reset to take on Trump.