On Saturday, we reported that Joe Biden was planning to discuss the future of his re-election campaign with his family on Sunday during a previously scheduled family gathering at Camp David. While many in the Democratic Party appear ready to pull the plug on Biden, the Biden campaign has been somewhat defiant, insisting that the octogenarian isn’t going anywhere.
But, according to pundit and author Bill O’Reilly, a decision has been made, and Biden is going to quit his campaign.
So, it’s over for Joe. But the White House doesn’t yet know how or when to make the announcement. Stay close. (2/2) #NoSpin
— Bill O’Reilly (@BillOReilly) June 30, 2024
Is this report trustworthy? Well, to be honest, I have my doubts. For one thing, there’s no indication that O’Reilly is basing this on any inside source. This reads like a very bold prediction being passed off as inside information.
If it were based on sources, other outlets would be reporting this as well, and so far, I’ve been unable to find any reports from other outlets indicating that such a decision has been made.
Does that mean O’Reilly is wrong? No.
For one thing, major donors do appear to be closing their checkbooks… for now.
“To many major donors of President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign, one thing is obvious after Thursday’s debate debacle: things need to change – and fast,” reports USA Today. “Less than 24 hours since the two men left the debate stage, Democratic donors were feverishly texting each other about facing a free fall ahead of the August convention in Chicago. With the clock ticking, bundlers − the people who give and rake in large sums − were openly wondering if they should be thinking about putting their money elsewhere. Other givers are having backroom discussions about whether they should step up to pressure Biden to step down directly.”
Related: DNC Insiders: Biden Was Set Up to Fail in a ‘Soft Coup’
The Biden campaign, however, claims that it raised $14 million on the day of the debate and the morning after, and had some fundraisers planned over the weekend, including a star-studded fundraiser with Sarah Jessica Parker, Matthew Broderick, and Michael J. Fox in East Hampton, NY.
The issue of major donors being reluctant to fund Biden’s campaign is a major development, considering that his campaign relies heavily on major donors, not grassroots donors.
But, still, O’Reilly appears to be be making a prediction, not reacting to anything he’s hearing from campaign sources. If sources were saying Biden has, in fact, decided to drop out of the race, then you’d expect they’d be telling several outlets.
And no one else appears to be reporting that a decision has been made.
Related: This Post-Debate Memo From the Biden Campaign Is Comedy Gold
Meanwhile, according to the New York Times, Biden’s family “is urging him to stay in the race and keep fighting despite last week’s disastrous debate performance, even as some members of his clan privately expressed exasperation at how he was prepared for the event by his staff, people close to the situation said on Sunday.”
Mr. Biden huddled with his wife, children and grandchildren at Camp David while he tried to figure out how to tamp down Democratic anxiety. While his relatives are acutely aware of how poorly he did against former President Donald J. Trump, they argued that he could still show the country that he is capable of serving for another four years.
Mr. Biden has also been soliciting ideas from advisers about how to proceed, and his staff has been discussing whether he should hold a news conference or sit for interviews to defend himself and change the narrative, but nothing has been decided yet. Aides were burning phone lines over the weekend to prevent major elected officials and financial supporters from abandoning him.
One of the strongest voices imploring Mr. Biden to resist pressure to drop out was his son Hunter Biden, whom the president has long leaned on for advice, said one of the people informed about the discussions, who, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity to share internal deliberations. Hunter Biden wants Americans to see the version of his father that he knows — scrappy and in command of the facts — rather than the stumbling, aging president Americans saw on Thursday night.
So, at the moment, it still looks like Biden has every intention of staying in the race.
