Biden braces for crucial post-debate interview as Trump brands Harris with new nickname: Live updates

Joe Biden is readying himself for a major interview with ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos to be broadcast on Friday evening that he hopes will reset his 2024 campaign and reassure voters over his fitness for office after his disastrous CNN debate performance in Atlanta, Georgia, last week.

Donald Trump has meanwhile issued a withering attack on the president and Kamala Harris, calling his rival “highly incapable” and saying he “choked like a dog” during the debate, also mocking Biden for blaming his poor performance on exhaustion and having a cold.

Turning his attention to the vice president – who is being tipped to succeed the president as the 2024 Democratic nominee – by calling her “Laffin Kamala Harris”, a new nickname alluding to her infectious chuckle.

“She did poorly in the Democrat Nominating process, starting out at Number Two, and ending up defeated and dropping out, even before getting to Iowa, but that doesn’t mean she’s not a “highly talented” politician!” the presumptive Republican nominee crowed on his Truth Social platform.

In a second post, Trump challenged Biden to “another Debate, but this time, no holds barred”, despite one already being scheduled for September 10 on ABC.

Key Points

• Biden braces for crucial post-debate interview as Trump attacks ‘Liddle’ George Stephanopoulos

• Trump lands Harris with new nickname and says Biden ‘choked like a dog’ in Fourth of July message

• Republican challenges president to ‘no holds barred’ second debate

• Biden uses Independence Day to blast Trump for turning US ‘into monarchy’

• Golf cart video reveals Trump saying ‘broken down pile of c***’ Biden is ‘quitting’ White House race

Trumps grifting on Fourth of July

12:30 , Joe Sommerlad

You almost have to admire the sheer tirelessness of their pursuit of a dollar.

Trump congratulates right-wing ally Nigel Farage on UK election win

12:00 , Joe Sommerlad

One more from Truth Social – here’s Trump congratulating his old crony on finally winning a seat in the UK’s House of Commons at the eighth time of asking as the Labour Party crushed the Conservatives in a landslide general election win that casts the Tories out of power after 14 horrendous years of incompetence, scandal and self-sabotage.

Here’s our story on a bromance revived.

Trump congratulates right-wing ally Nigel Farage on UK election win

Embattled Biden makes latest gaffe saying he’s the ‘first Black woman to serve with a Black president’

11:30 , Joe Sommerlad

Deary me.

Here’s James Liddell’s report on the president’s latest goof.

Biden’s latest gaffe: He’s the ‘first Black woman to serve with a Black president’

Biden uses Fourth of July to warn against Trump’s ‘monarchy’

11:00 , Joe Sommerlad

Back to the president, who yesterday insisted “I’m not going anywhere” at a Fourth of July event for military personnel and their families at the White House, during which he laid out the stakes of November’s election.

“We must look at ourselves and ask the question: will we stand for freedom again? Will we stand for democracy?” he asked.

Here’s Alex Woodward on Biden’s warning against a Trump “monarchy” in light of the Supreme Court’s alarming immunity ruling in his favour.

Biden warns against Trump’s ‘monarchy’ while ex-president gleefully watches the chaos

Trump attacks ‘Liddle’ George Stephanopoulos ahead of Biden interview

10:30 , Joe Sommerlad

And finally from the former president’s social feed, here’s his attack on ABC anchor “George Slopadopoulos” ahead of his interview with Biden due to be broadcast this evening, which the president hopes will clear the air over his wellbeing and resassure voters that he remains up to the job.

“The meanest and most vicious interviewer out there”? George Stephanopoulos? Really?

That one just gets crazier and crazier the further you get through it and ends up entirely rabid.

Martha McHardy has this on what’s at stake as the journalist flies out to Wisconsin to sit down with the under-pressure octogenarian.

How Biden’s ‘make or break’ interview with ABC News could fall short

Trump challenges Biden to ‘no holds barred’ second debate

10:00 , Joe Sommerlad

Also on Truth Social, the Republican challenged the president to a second debate – despite the fact that one is already scheduled for September 10 and due to be broadcast on ABC News.

“I have the answer to the Crooked Joe Biden Incompetence Puzzle — Let’s do another Debate, but this time, no holds barred – An all on discussion, with just the two of us on stage, talking about the future of our Country,” Trump wrote, then pivoting towards salivating over the thought of the ratings and to misrepresenting Biden’s policy positions.

Trump attacks Harris with new nickname and says Biden ‘choked like a dog’

09:39 , Joe Sommerlad

Donald Trump has issued a withering attack on Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, calling the president “highly incapable” and saying he “choked like a dog” during their first presidential debate in Atlanta, Georgia, last week, also mocking Biden for blaming his poor performance on exhaustion and a cold.

Turning his attention to the vice president – who is being tipped to succeed the president as the 2024 Democratic nominee – by calling her “Laffin Kamala Harris”, a new nickname alluding to her infectious chuckle.

“She did poorly in the Democrat Nominating process, starting out at Number Two, and ending up defeated and dropping out, even before getting to Iowa, but that doesn’t mean she’s not a “highly talented” politician!” the presumptive Republican nominee crowed on his Truth Social platform.

Mike Bedigan has more.

Trump calls Kamala Harris his ‘new Democrat challenger’ in scathing July 4 post

Jill Biden is still Joe’s biggest supporter — and she’s ‘all in’ for him staying in the race

09:00 , James Liddell

As confidence in Joe Biden’s ability to lead the country wanes among both Democrats and the public, the president has a ballast behind-the-scenes attempting to keep his re-election bid on course: Jill Biden.

Biden’s disastrous performance at the first debate of the 2024 election against Donald Trump thrust his mental fitness into the limelight. Within the past week, three senior Democrats have either publicly called on the president to stand aside or announced he would lose the election, and Trump now has a six-point lead in the latest The Wall Street Journal poll.

The 73-year-old first lady, however, has publicly painted a rosy picture of her husband’s performance. “Joe you did such a great job,” Dr. Biden proclaimed in the immediate aftermath last Thursday, before adding: “You answered every question!”

Jill Biden is ‘all in’ for Joe staying in the race

VIDEO: Democratic governors back President Biden

08:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Impeach, expand, investigate: How Democrats in Congress are trying to rein in the Supreme Court

07:00 , Alex Woodward

Two centuries after the constitution’s authors warned against an “elected king” in the executive office, the Supreme Court kicked off the week of the Fourth of July with a sweeping decision on presidential immunity that Justice Sonia Sotomayor said will create “a king above the law.”

Democrats in Congress have introduced several pieces of legislation to overhaul the Supreme Court, from codes of ethics to attempts to block precedent-shredding decisions that will have profound effects on government and society. They’re likely to fail.

How Democrats in Congress are trying to reign in the conservative Supreme Court

Netflix co-founder and major Democratic donor calls for Biden to exit race

06:00 , James Liddell

Billionaire Democratic donor and Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings has called for Joe Biden to drop out of the presidential race after his dismal debate showing against Donald Trump last week.

In what marks a major blow to his reelection campaign, Hastings, 63, has became one of the party’s first, and most pivotal, benefactors to call on the 81-year-old president to step aside.

The entrepreneur, who has an estimated net worth of $4.8bn, told The New York Times: “Biden needs to step aside to allow a vigorous Democratic leader to beat Trump and keep us safe and prosperous.”

Hastings, who co-founded the streaming giant in 1997, and his wife Patty Quillin have donated more than $20m to the Democrats in recent years, including $1.5m to Biden in his 2020 bid for office.

Netflix co-founder and major Democratic donor calls for Biden to exit race

Disney heiress vows to stop Democratic donations until Biden stands aside

05:05 , Graeme Massie

Disney heiress vows to stop Democratic donations until Biden stands aside

GoFundMe for Stormy Daniels tops $800k as she reveals threats over Trump conviction

04:00 , Joe Sommerlad

A GoFundMe campaign for Stormy Daniels has raised more than $800,000 in the eight days since it launched in order to help the adult film star deal with the fallout of speaking out against Donald Trump.

Daniels – real name Stephanie Clifford – was the star witness at the Republican presidential candidate’s hush money trial this spring, which ended with Trump being convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in order to hide a $130,000 payment to silence her in the days before the 2016 election about an alleged sexual encounter in 2006.

Trump is set to be sentenced by Judge Juan Merchan on September 18, after he was granted a delay as he seeks to overturn his conviction in in light of the Supreme Court’s recent immunity ruling.

GoFundMe for Stormy Daniels tops $800k as she reveals threats over Trump conviction

Biden warns against Trump’s ‘monarchy’ on July 4 while ex-president gleefully watches the chaos

03:01 , Graeme Massie

Biden warns against Trump’s ‘monarchy’ while ex-president gleefully watches the chaos

Biden introduces July 4 concert to crowd outside the White House

01:47 , Alex Woodward

Vice President Kamala Harris introduced Joe Biden to a crowd outside a Fourth of July concert hosted by the White House.

She called him an “extraordinary” president.

“We gotta do what our founders did. We’re a nation of dignity, honor and devotion to one another,” Biden said in extremely brief remarks.

“Folks, it’s all about democracy. It’s all about freedom. It’s all about who we are.”

He walked off stage telling the crowd to “enjoy the fireworks” as they chanted “four more years.”

Biden: ‘I’m not going anywhere’

01:35 , Alex Woodward

As President Biden gave remarks outside the White House for a Fourth of July event on Thursday night, a supporter called out “keep up the fight” and “we need you.”

“You got me man,” he replied. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Biden takes a shot at Trump during White House Fourth of July event

01:30 , Alex Woodward

During a brief speech to military families outside the White House on Thursday, President Biden spoke up for democracy at home and broad, referencing his recent visit to Normandy to commemorate the D-Day anniversary.

At one point, he took a dig at Trump: “I was in a World War I cemetery in France, and … the former president, didn’t want to go and be up there — which I probably shouldn’t have said.”

“Anyway,” he continued. “We gotta just remember who the hell we are. We’re the United States of America.”

Biden asks Americans to ‘stand up for democracy’ at Fourth of July event

01:25 , Alex Woodward

In scripted remarks outside the White House for a Fourth of July event for military families on Thursday night, the president said: “We must look at ourselves and ask the question, will we stand for freedom again? Will we stand for democracy? Will we stand together as Americans?”

“I believe we will, and we can,” he added.

Biden warns against Trump’s ‘monarchy’ on July 4

01:31 , Alex Woodward

The aftermath of Biden’s debate performance has been an apparently welcome diversion for Donald Trump and his campaign, keeping media attention away from his own streak of unintelligible public statements, questions about his mental fitness, and an off-the-rails agenda that just a few days ago called for “televised military tribunals” for a former congresswoman.

He’s kept a relatively low profile, for him, and appears content to let his Democratic rivals duke out their political future.

Now, Biden is hoping to use the Fourth of July holiday to turn the conversation around:

Biden warns against Trump’s ‘monarchy’ while ex-president gleefully watches the chaos

VIDEO: Biden’s political future being questioned

Friday 5 July 2024 00:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Does Kamala Harris have what it takes to beat Trump if Biden bows out?

Thursday 4 July 2024 23:30 , Andrew Feinberg

With pressure mounting for President Joe Biden to stand aside after his troubling debate performance against Donald Trump, Vice President Kamala Harris has emerged as a surprisingly strong potential challenger to the ex-president.

Harris — the first woman, the first African-American and the first person of Asian descent to serve in the nation’s second-highest office — has been dogged by dismal approval ratings and a policy portfolio that has seen her take on politically tricky issues, like the root causes of an immigration crisis that’s brought hundreds of thousands to the US in recent years.

But she has also spent the last three years building a profile on the world stage, most recently at last month’s Ukraine peace talks in Switzerland. She’s also become the administration’s most prominent messenger on reproductive freedom in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling, which marked the end of a half-century-old federal right to an abortion. Harris’ “reproductive freedom tour” has taken her to events across the country where she has barnstormed events packed with female and minority voters.

Does Kamala Harris have what it takes to beat Trump if Biden bows out?

Full story: Biden warns against Trump’s ‘monarchy’ on July 4 while ex-president gleefully watches the chaos

Thursday 4 July 2024 23:04 , Alex Woodward

The aftermath of Biden’s debate performance has been an apparently welcome diversion for Donald Trump and his campaign, keeping media attention away from his own streak of unintelligible public statements, questions about his mental fitness, and an off-the-rails agenda that just a few days ago called for “televised military tribunals” for a former congresswoman.

He’s kept a relatively low profile, for him, and appears content to let his Democratic rivals duke out their political future.

Now, Biden is hoping to use the Fourth of July to turn the conversation around:

Biden warns against Trump’s ‘monarchy’ while ex-president gleefully watches the chaos

Fan cams and coconut trees: Kamala Harris memes are resurrecting the KHive

Thursday 4 July 2024 23:00 , Alex Woodward

The internet has fallen out of the coconut tree.

Speculation that President Joe Biden will hang up his re-election campaign has triggered a wave of semi-ironic online support for Vice President Kamala Harris, with fan cams set to songs from Charli XCX and memes that riff on a string of memorable quotes from her last few years in office.

The “KHive” — the online grassroots stan-culture army of earnest supporters who fueled online rage and enthusiastic support for Harris when she launched her 2020 run for the presidency — was resurrected overnight. Now Americans are quickly become coconut-pilled, Kamala maxxing, “existing in context” and “unburdened by what has been.”

Fan cams and coconut trees: Kamala Harris memes are resurrecting the KHive

How the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling opened the door for a shocking question: Can presidents kill their rivals?

Thursday 4 July 2024 22:30 , Alex Woodward

Can a president order a rival’s assassination and get away with it?

It was an absurd hypothetical raised by an appeals court judge to point out the literally unbelievable and dangerous consequences of the legal argument from Donald Trump’s attorneys.

But it landed as a shocking warning from a Supreme Court justice in an earthquaking decision this week that shields Trump from accountability for crimes committed in office.

There has never been any legal precedent that would give a president such authority. But according to legal scholars, attorneys and the Supreme Court’s liberal justices, the decision has seemingly opened the door to question whether the commander in chief can commit legal murder.

A shocking question at the Supreme Court: Can presidents kill their rivals?

Six other presidents didn’t run for another term. Here’s what happened then

Thursday 4 July 2024 22:00 , Gustaf Kilander

President Joe Biden is in the fight for his political life, having acknowledged that the next few days are crucial to convincing the American public that he’s the right person to lead the country for the next four years.

The crisis comes after Biden’s dismal debate performance on June 27, when he appeared frail, his voice raspy, and during which he made several gaffes and appeared to lose his train of thought.

In public, he has insisted that he’s still in the race and that he’s confident that he can beat former president Donald Trump even as his predecessor is pulling away in poll after poll.

But there’s precedent for declining to run for a second term and stepping aside. Most recently, and possibly most famously, back in 1968.

Six other presidents didn’t run for another term. Here’s what happened then

VIDEO: US elections: White House says zero chance Biden will withdraw

Thursday 4 July 2024 21:30 , Gustaf Kilander

Virginia school board member who admitted to boozing in the Capitol gets jail time for Jan 6 riot

Thursday 4 July 2024 21:00 , Graig Graziosi

A member of a Virginia school board who bragged about drinking beer inside the Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot will spend 12 days behind bars for storming the halls of Congress.

Miles Adkins, 39, has pleaded guilty to two federal misdemeanors in connection with the riot and has been sentenced to 12 days in prison — only to be served on weekends — plus two years of probation and fines and restitution.

Despite his guilty plea, Adkins told NBC News4 that he refuses to capitulate to the demands of community members who want him to step down from his position on the Frederick County Public Schools board.

“You’re gonna need a bigger wrecking ball to get me out of there,” he told a reporter.

Virginia school board member who stormed Capitol and boozed up inside is sentenced

Video reveals Trump saying ‘broken down pile of c***’ Biden is ‘quitting’ White House race

Thursday 4 July 2024 20:30 , Joe Sommerlad

Donald Trump has branded Joe Biden a “broken down pile of c**p” and Vice President Kamala Harris “pathetic” as he claims the embattled president has already quit the White House race.

In a video posted to his Truth Social platform, the Republican presidential candidate is seen slouched behind the wheel of a golf buggy alongside his teenage son Barron Trump and declaring to an unidentified third party: “How did I do with the debate the other night? I kicked that old, broken down pile of c**p.

“He just quit, you know – he’s quitting the race… and that means we have Kamala. I think she’s going to be better,” Trump mutters sarcastically.

Trump goes on to lay into Harris, deriding the prospect of her succeeding Biden on the ticket.

“She’s so pathetic, she’s so f***ing bad. Can you imagine… dealing with [Vladimir] Putin, the president of China – who’s a fierce person, he’s a fierce man, a very tough guy…” he adds, before driving off across the green.

Video reveals Trump saying ‘broken down pile of c***’ Biden is ‘quitting’ race

Biden campaign uses July 4th to blast Trump for turning U.S. ‘into monarchy’

Thursday 4 July 2024 20:29 , Gustaf Kilander

In an email, the Biden campaign told supporters that, “This July fourth, Donald Trump wants to make America a monarchy again.”

Biden campaign

Biden admits to Democratic governors he’s tired and needs to work less: ‘It’s just my brain’

Thursday 4 July 2024 20:22 , James Liddell, Alex Woodward

President Joe Biden reportedly told a group of Democratic governors on Wednesday that he needs more sleep, wants to wrap up his days by 8 p.m., and joked that while his health is in good shape, “it’s just my brain.”

The president also revealed that he had a brief medical check-up after last week’s debate — shortly after the White House told reporters that Biden had not seen a doctor since.

A group of 20 governors met with Biden at the White House on Wednesday night as mounting concerns about his mental fitness have followed a faltering performance at his first debate against Donald Trump, which the president blamed on both a cold and jet lag.

Biden tells Democrats he had a medical check-up after debate disaster

Impeach, expand, investigate: How Democrats in Congress are trying to rein in the Supreme Court

Thursday 4 July 2024 20:00 , Alex Woodward

Two centuries after the constitution’s authors warned against an “elected king” in the executive office, the Supreme Court kicked off the week of the Fourth of July with a sweeping decision on presidential immunity that Justice Sonia Sotomayor said will create “a king above the law.”

Democrats in Congress have introduced several pieces of legislation to overhaul the Supreme Court, from codes of ethics to attempts to block precedent-shredding decisions that will have profound effects on government and society. They’re likely to fail.

How Democrats in Congress are trying to reign in the conservative Supreme Court

VIDEO: Trump ‘veepstakes’ heats up as running mate pick looms

Thursday 4 July 2024 19:30 , Gustaf Kilander

Trump lashes out at Biden, Harris, and special counsel in July 4 message

Thursday 4 July 2024 19:15 , Gustaf Kilander

Donald Trump on Truth Social

Netflix co-founder and major Democratic donor calls for Biden to exit race

Thursday 4 July 2024 19:00 , James Liddell

Billionaire Democratic donor and Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings has called for Joe Biden to drop out of the presidential race after his dismal debate showing against Donald Trump last week.

In what marks a major blow to his reelection campaign, Hastings, 63, has became one of the party’s first, and most pivotal, benefactors to call on the 81-year-old president to step aside.

The entrepreneur, who has an estimated net worth of $4.8bn, told The New York Times: “Biden needs to step aside to allow a vigorous Democratic leader to beat Trump and keep us safe and prosperous.”

Hastings, who co-founded the streaming giant in 1997, and his wife Patty Quillin have donated more than $20m to the Democrats in recent years, including $1.5m to Biden in his 2020 bid for office.

Netflix co-founder and major Democratic donor calls for Biden to exit race

Biden tells governors he needs to work less and sleep more

Thursday 4 July 2024 18:51 , Gustaf Kilander

Biden told a group of Democratic governors that he needs to work fewer hours and get more sleep, which includes limiting events after 8pm, two people who took part in the meeting told The New York Times.

The president’s Wednesday comments revealed that Biden is admitting to the fatigue that comes with the job during a meeting meant to sure up support within his party.

Biden also told the governors that he’s staying in the race. He outlined his recent foreign travel in the weeks ahead of his dismal debate performance on 27 June, during which he lost his train of thought, his voice was raspy, and he made several gaffes.

Biden said on several occasions on Wednesday that he had not been listening to his staff about his schedule.

Hawaii Governor Josh Green, a physician, asked Biden about his health, to which Biden said his health is fine.

“It’s just my brain,” he added.

Biden campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said Biden had said, “All kidding aside.”

“He was clearly making a joke,” she told The Times.

White House issues readout of call between Biden and Netanyahu

Thursday 4 July 2024 18:45 , Gustaf Kilander

White House

How the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling opened the door for a shocking question: Can presidents kill their rivals?

Thursday 4 July 2024 18:30 , Joe Sommerlad

It was an absurd hypothetical raised by an appeals court judge to point out the literally unbelievable and dangerous consequences of the legal argument from Donald Trump’s attorneys.

But it landed as a shocking warning from a Supreme Court justice in an earthquaking decision this week that shields Trump from accountability for crimes committed in office.

There has never been any legal precedent that would give a president such authority.

But according to legal scholars, attorneys and the Supreme Court’s liberal justices, the decision has seemingly opened the door to question whether the commander in chief can commit legal murder.

Alex Woodward reports.

A shocking question at the Supreme Court: Can presidents kill their rivals?

Recap: Biden admits he ‘screwed up’ debate

Thursday 4 July 2024 18:00 , Joe Sommerlad

Here’s another look at our top story today.

“I had a bad night,” the president told Wisconsin radio host Earl Ingram in an interview that aired this morning.

“And the fact of the matter is that I screwed up. I made a mistake.

“That’s 90 minutes on stage, look at what I’ve done in three-and-a-half years.”

Biden also used the interview to talk up his efforts on behalf of the Black community, declaring: “I picked a Black woman to be my vice president.

“I’ve appointed the first Black woman to be a Supreme Court justice. I’ve appointed more Black judges, more Black women judges, than every other president in American history combined.”

On Trump’s treatment of the same demographic, the president said: “I’m sorry to get so worked up.

“But he is just — he’s terrible things in the community, and he has about as much interest and concern for Black, minority communities as the man on the moon does.”

Here’s more from Andrew Feinberg.

Biden admits he ‘screwed up’ debate — but insists he can still ‘beat’ Trump

‘If you raise problems in parts of Bidenworld, it can be deemed disloyal’

Thursday 4 July 2024 17:30 , Joe Sommerlad

Here’s an interesting insight into the ongoing West Wing psychodrama from CNN’s pundits this morning.

McCarthy complains Biden offered him cookies

Thursday 4 July 2024 17:00 , Joe Sommerlad

Kevin McCarthy, the former Republican House speaker – ousted by his own side, lest we forget – was busy telling Fox News yesterday he found it “depressing” whenever the president of the United States offered him cookies in the White House, a weird remark that attracted a number of withering responses of which the following was unquestionably the most devastating.

‘Mr Gorbachev, tear down this coconut tree!’ Kamala memes explode amid Biden anxiety

Thursday 4 July 2024 16:40 , Joe Sommerlad

Alex Woodward surveys a resurgent “KHive”, the irony-poisoned jokers and exhausted voters who are only semi-ironically calling for a President Harris to take the stage before it’s too late.

Confused? Just remember you exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you.

Or, you know, just watch this joyous thread.

Fan cams and coconut trees: Kamala Harris memes are resurrecting the KHive

GoFundMe for Stormy Daniels tops $800k as she reveals threats over Trump conviction

Thursday 4 July 2024 16:20 , Joe Sommerlad

A GoFundMe campaign for Stormy Daniels has raised more than $800,000 in the eight days since it launched in order to help the adult film star deal with the fallout of speaking out against Donald Trump.

Daniels – real name Stephanie Clifford – was the star witness at the Republican presidential candidate’s hush money trial this spring, which ended with Trump being convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in order to hide a $130,000 payment to silence her in the days before the 2016 election about an alleged sexual encounter in 2006.

Trump is set to be sentenced by Judge Juan Merchan on September 18, after he was granted a delay as he seeks to overturn his conviction in in light of the Supreme Court’s recent immunity ruling.

In a new interview on MSNBC this week, Daniels revealed she has received numerous threats from Trump supporters since testifying against him in the Manhattan trial, including on Facebook “from people in my own community” and from strangers warning “they were going to rape everybody in my family, including my young daughter, before they killed them”.

“Trump is trying to make, I believe, trying to make an example out of me,” she told Rachel Maddow.

Here’s our report.

GoFundMe for Stormy Daniels tops $800k as she reveals threats over Trump conviction

Jill Biden is still Joe’s biggest supporter – and she’s ‘all in’ for him staying in the race

Thursday 4 July 2024 16:00 , Joe Sommerlad

The 73-year-old Dr Jill has publicly painted a rosy picture of her husband’s performance in the debate, at odds with almost everyone else’s version of events.

“Joe you did such a great job,” she proclaimed in its immediate aftermath last Thursday, before adding: “You answered every question!”

In the days since, she has remained steadfast – both in public and in private – in her belief that he should remain in the race.

“[We] will not let those 90 minutes define the four years he’s been president,” Dr Biden told Vogue earlier this week.

Here’s James Liddell again with a look at the first lady’s role in this whole mess.

Jill Biden is ‘all in’ for Joe staying in the race

Biden tells Democrats he had a medical check-up after disastrous debate as he tries to keep party on side

Thursday 4 July 2024 15:40 , Joe Sommerlad

Here’s a little more on a line I mentioned earlier from the president’s call with governors – his revelation that he had a medical exam in the aftermath of last week’s events in Georgia and was given the all-clear.

James Liddell has this report.

Biden tells Democrats he had a medical check-up after debate disaster

Truth Social: Trump celebrates Independence Day by posting four-year-old clip of Mount Rushmore speech

Thursday 4 July 2024 15:20 , Joe Sommerlad

Who’s up for some pandemic nostalgia? No, me neither.

Although perhaps the above is preferable to what he posted earlier, a nasty video of a robbery on a train (in which two of the assailants are wearing red baseball caps) accompanied by a declaration that: “Biden Migrant Crime gets bloodier by the day.”

You can see that one here if you must.

Noem says Americans can’t relate to Harris

Thursday 4 July 2024 15:00 , Joe Sommerlad

Conservatives seem to absolutely despise “cackling” Kamala Harris but if there’s one person who should probably keep quiet about being “relatable”, it’s South Dakota governor Kristi Noem, who assumed that telling the world she had murdered her dog would be a guaranteed vote-winner.

How would replacing Biden actually work?

Thursday 4 July 2024 14:30 , Joe Sommerlad

Although the president’s campaign insists he is “absolutely not dropping out”, here is Eric Garcia with a look at the mechanics of replacing him at the top of the Democratic presidential ticket, just in case.

What happens if Biden drops out of the race?

DNC committee member proposes alternative way to replace Biden

Thursday 4 July 2024 14:00 , Joe Sommerlad

James Zogby, a former adviser to Jesse Jackson and Bernie Sanders, has proposed a plan to have an open contest for the Democratic presidential nomination after the incumbent’s disastrous appearance in the first debate last week, writes Eric Garcia.

DNC committee member proposes alternative way to replace Biden

Biden insiders think there’s ‘no question’ Harris will move to top of ticket

Thursday 4 July 2024 13:30 , Joe Sommerlad

Campaign staffers are preparing to shift their focus to elevating, then electing, vice president Kamala Harris, sources have told The Independent, even as Biden vehemently denies any intention to stand aside.

Here’s the latest from Andrew Feinberg.

Biden insiders think there’s ‘no question’ Kamala Harris will move to top of ticket

‘Everybody wants him to quit’: Democrats continue to pounce on Biden as doubts swirl over his political future

Thursday 4 July 2024 13:00 , Joe Sommerlad

Despite the president’s best efforts, senior Democrats remain in “panic mode” after Biden insisted he would not abandon his presidential re-election campaign despite serious concerns growing over his mental fitness for office.

Anonymous lawmakers described the situation facing Biden and the Democratic party in a pointed interview with Politico.

“Everybody wants him to quit. There’s a sense of despair,” the unnamed lawmaker told the outlet.

“I think people don’t understand how we get out of this hole. And we’re hurtling toward losing to Trump.

“All my text chains in Congress go from a dark humor to ‘let’s take action’… I don’t find any discernible group of people who actually believe we’re going to win with Joe Biden.”

Mike Bedigan has the latest.

Democrats continue to pounce on Biden as doubts swirl over his political future