Obama wants Biden to ‘seriously consider’ viability of remaining in presidential race: Report

Former President Barack Obama has told allies that he thinks President Biden should “seriously consider” the viability of his candidacy, according to a new report.

It is the latest in a series of reports revealing top Democrats subtly pressuring the president to exit the presidential race.

Mr. Obama has only spoken to Mr. Biden once since the debate and his conversations of late have been with anxious Democrats such as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, according to the report in The Washington Post.

In sharing his thoughts on those calls, Mr. Obama said he is worried about polls showing Biden slipping further behind former president Donald Trump, who is gaining momentum as Democratic donors defect from the president.

The Washington Times reached out to Mr. Obama’s team for comment.

Mr. Obama has not explicitly called on Mr. Biden to drop out of the presidential race, reportedly telling those he spoke with that the decision remains with Mr. Biden and pushing back on the idea that he alone could influence his former vice president’s decision-making. He has emphasized that his concern is protecting Biden and his legacy, according to the newspaper.

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Mr. Obama defended Mr. Biden the night after his disastrous performance in the June 27 debate, writing on social media that “bad debate nights happen,” but has otherwise been publicly quiet since.

Mr. Biden and his campaign have repeatedly said that he is staying in the race and stuck to that position through a series of reports in recent days about top Democrats who are privately pressuring him to drop out, including Ms. Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Axios reported Thursday that top Democrats believe the rising pressure will persuade Mr. Biden to drop out of the presidential race as soon as this weekend.

“His choice is to be one of history’s heroes, or to be sure of the fact that there’ll never be a Biden presidential library,” one of the president’s close friends told the news outlet. “I pray that he does the right thing. He’s headed that way.”