Biden Faces Mounting Pressure to Abandon 2024 Reelection Bid Amid Isolation and Internal Dissent

President Joe Biden finds himself more isolated than ever, with senior White House and campaign officials privately urging him to drop his bid for a second term soon.

“The next 72 hours are big,” a Democratic governor closely connected to party officials told aides on Thursday. “This can’t go on much longer.”

In interviews with CNN, over two dozen sources close to the West Wing and campaign dynamics said there’s a widespread belief that Biden staying in the 2024 race is untenable. “Everyone is saying it privately,” a senior Democrat said. “People see and feel the walls closing in.”

A top Democrat close to the White House noted Biden has become “exceptionally insulated and isolated” since the CNN presidential debate on June 27. Multiple sources said some of Biden’s senior advisers – including Anita Dunn, attorney Bob Bauer, and campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon – faced backlash from Biden’s family post-debate.

This situation has made Biden’s inner circle of advisers even smaller and more impenetrable. Three weeks after his poor debate performance, only a few of his closest aides – like longtime advisers Mike Donilon and Steve Ricchetti – and family members remain firmly by his side. This tight circle has alarmed many Democrats who question if Biden is receiving accurate information about his campaign’s dire situation.

Deputy White House chief of staff Annie Tomasini, another long-time Biden aide, joins Donilon and Ricchetti in forming a protective bubble around the president. Anthony Bernal, Jill Biden’s chief of staff, has become more influential during this crisis, suppressing dissent and reporting naysayers to the First Lady. Tomasini, however, reportedly does not decide who the president interacts with.

Ricchetti is more realistic about Biden’s challenges, two insiders said, as he remains the primary contact for lawmakers trying to communicate with the president. Despite growing speculation about Biden’s future, senior West Wing advisers told CNN on Thursday night that they haven’t discussed Biden dropping out of the race with him.

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates stated that Biden is “proud of the well-rounded team he has built.” He added, “He has not made changes to the group of advisers he consults, who he trusts because they’ve demonstrated the integrity to tell the truth and keep the wellbeing of the American people front of mind.”

Campaign spokesman Kevin Munoz echoed a positive outlook, saying, “Here in HQ, we’re working really hard because on winning campaigns, you work really hard. There’s an immense sense of pride across our office, because we know how important and critical that work we are doing here is for the fate of our democracy.”

Sources told CNN that Biden’s response to unfavorable polls has been to question if anyone else would do better. Meetings and calls with anyone who might bring bad news seem to have stopped. “The phones just kind of stopped ringing,” a senior Democrat said.

A tense recent conversation between Biden and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi highlighted this disconnect. Disagreeing over polling data, Pelosi asked for Donilon, a former pollster, to join the call to discuss the data. Pelosi’s spokesperson said the “feeding frenzy from the press based on anonymous sources misrepresents any conversations the speaker may have had with the president.”

“He doesn’t want to hear from anyone. He wants to hear from Mike Donilon and Steve,” a top Democrat close to the White House said.

One insider claimed that Donilon and Ricchetti have presented various views to Biden, who has been directly speaking with many party officials for feedback. In a meeting with top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries, Biden fiercely contested the idea that his colleagues wanted him to step aside.

On Capitol Hill, some Democratic lawmakers have begun to voice their concerns publicly. So far, 20 House Democrats have called on Biden to drop out. Meanwhile, White House and campaign aides continue their work, with many feeling deep despair.

“There are a lot of people who tell themselves – it is my job to do this,” one Democrat close to the White House said. “But privately, they feel differently.”

Biden’s deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks said Thursday the campaign is “not working through any scenarios” where Biden isn’t the presidential nominee. “Our campaign is not working through any scenarios where President Biden is not the top of the ticket. He is and will be the Democratic nominee,” he said during a DNC news conference in Milwaukee.

Biden’s debate performance and the subsequent decline in his campaign have caused significant discontent within the White House. Officials have questioned the motives of Biden’s advisers – whether they are sticking to their course due to a misreading of the situation or a desire to maintain their proximity to power.

“This decision is not just about Biden,” a former aide who worked with Biden for decades told CNN. “There are other senior advisers who are considering whether they played the right role in this.”

Frustration with Biden’s advisers is widespread, with staff grappling with a lack of information and decisions about their professional futures. “Staff in general are just over the leadership here,” a White House official said.

Former administration officials have noted an increase in resumes from colleagues seeking exit plans in the private sector.

As Biden spent Thursday out of sight, recovering from Covid-19 at his beach house in Delaware, those who spoke with him described him as “receptive” to arguments for stepping away from his reelection bid. A senior Democratic adviser told CNN that Biden is in a “contemplative stage” as he isolates in Rehoboth Beach. A source familiar with Biden’s mindset said he is “thinking things through” and “deliberating” on his reelection campaign. Privately, Biden has acknowledged to others the limited path forward given the unfavorable data.

This source indicated that any announcement is unlikely before the weekend and warned that anyone claiming to know Biden’s plans does not truly know.

This uncertainty frustrates many Democrats who wonder if Biden has made any new decisions about his future. If he does step aside, a series of events will unfold that officials need time to prepare for.

Inside the White House, senior officials are bracing for Republican calls for Biden to resign if he doesn’t seek reelection, adding to the complexities surrounding his decision.

As Biden’s political future hangs in the balance, the White House is receiving letters, calls, and messages from Americans, including Democratic voters like Terri and John Hale. “It’s with utmost respect that we offer this conclusion – you cannot win this race,” the Hales, retirees from Ankeny, Iowa, wrote in a letter to the White House obtained by CNN. “Not because you are not the better man, but because the public – rightly or wrongly – now sees your age and perceived limitations as the main issue in the campaign.”