After 23 days of defying calls from Democratic lawmakers and donors to withdraw from his reelection campaign, President Joe Biden made an unexpected decision to step down. Despite starting the day with the intent to continue his campaign, a meeting with his closest aides, Steve Ricchetti and Mike Donilon, altered his outlook. Their discussions, laden with new information regarding concerns from lawmakers, dwindling campaign funding, and unfavorable internal poll results, painted a bleak picture of his reelection chances.
Politico reported that the pivotal meeting took place at Biden’s Delaware home, where he was still recovering from Covid. After digesting the information and implications, Biden announced his decision to step down on Sunday afternoon with only a handful of trusted aides present. He shared his decision with the rest of his campaign and White House staff after the withdrawal letter was posted on X.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 21, 2024
After the letter was posted with no caption another post stated Biden would endorse Kamala Harris.
My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term. My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best… pic.twitter.com/x8DnvuImJV
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 21, 2024
Biden’s decision was influenced not only by internal party defections and some of the strong pressure came from former Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi.
According to Politico Pelosi was one of the main drivers to force Biden out.
A Democrat leaked to the press what Pelosi told Biden:
“Nancy made clear that they could do this the easy way or the hard way,” said one Democrat familiar with private conversations who was granted anonymity to speak candidly. “She gave them three weeks of the easy way. It was about to be the hard way.”
the report seems to elude that if Biden didn’t withdraw from the race by July 22nd, the pressure would increase.
