memeorandum: Hawaii governor says Biden could decide within days whether to remain in the presidential race (Mark Thiessen/Associated Press)

12:45 PM ET, July 7, 2024

Top Items:

Behind the Curtain: Unbendable Biden vs. breaking-point Dems … Both plan fierce public and private campaigns to see who buckles. — It won't be him, Biden says publicly and privately. … These Democrats, further deflated by Biden's high-stakes ABC interview, believe there's nothing …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, BBC and NBC News

Washington Post:

Biden thought he had it under control. Then it got worse. — The inside story of the Biden team's failure over nine days to contain the crisis from his debate with Trump. — President Biden's top aides awoke after debate night with a plan to contain the damage: A raucous North Carolina crowd …

Discussion: PoliticusUSA and Eschaton

Washington Post:

Election 2024 latest news Bidens hit campaign trail; Trump nears VP pick — President Biden's campaign is planning two events in Pennsylvania on Sunday as he and his staff remain defiant against calls to drop his reelection bid after a damaging debate performance.

Discussion: WVEC

Alex Thompson / Axios:
Biden's team drafted the questions for his first post-debate interviews

NBC News:
'It's Shakespearean': Long-simmering tensions between Biden's family and aides spill out

Discussion: Twitchy, Washington Examiner, Daily Mail and HotAir

New York Times:
As Biden Digs In, More Supporters Look to Push Him Out

Discussion: JONATHAN TURLEY, emptywheel, Politico, New York Post, The Daily Beast, Associated Press, ABC News, CNN, Fox News, The Guardian and Raw Story, more at Mediagazer »

The Philadelphia Inquirer:

The lingering focus on Biden's shaky debate obscures Trump's major verbal miscues — President Joe Biden dug himself a hole and now he is trying to climb out. But many fellow Democrats and some in the media keep shoveling dirt on him.One 20-minute TV interview was never going to swing …

Politico:

The world wasn't ready for Trump in 2016. It's not making that mistake this time. — In 2016, no one in the world was ready for President Trump. America's NATO allies aren't making the same mistake this time. — In Brussels, NATO officials have devised a plan to lock in long-term military support …

Discussion: Associated Press, Politico and New York Times

Politico:

Playbook: Biden's lesson in political first aid — With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine — DRIVING THE DAY — MUST READ — “Secret Meetings, Private Threats and a Massive Arms Race: How the World is Preparing for Trump,” by Paul McLeary, Christoph Schiltz, Stefanie Bolzen, Jacopo Barigazzi and Philipp Fritz:

Discussion: The Detroit News and Sputnik News

David Axelrod / CNN:
Biden's defiant delusion

Discussion: The Message Box, Mother Jones, RedState, New York Times, New York Daily News, Washington Post, Fox News, Washington Examiner, So What and ABC News

Politico:
American allies fear Biden is finished and can't beat Trump

Discussion: Raw Story, RedState, CNN, One America News Network and SWAMY WORLD

Mark Thiessen / Associated Press:

Hawaii governor says Biden could decide within days whether to remain in the presidential race — U.S. President Joe Biden could make a decision within days whether to remain a candidate for reelection, said Hawaii's governor who participated in a recent meeting with Biden and other Democratic governors …

Discussion: Washington Examiner and Fox News

Bill Barrow / Associated Press:

At Essence, Black Democrats rally behind Biden and talk up Kamala Harris, but she avoids the drama — NEW ORLEANS (AP) — As President Joe Biden tries to revive his embattled reelection bid, Vice President Kamala Harris led a parade of Black Democrats who warned Saturday that the threat …

Discussion: USA Today, Raw Story, Associated Press, The Guardian, ABC News and New York Daily News

Charles Gasparino / New York Post:

America may soon be subjected to the country's first DEI president: Kamala Harris — There is a raging debate in corporate America on the future of DEI, aka Diversity Equity and Inclusion, because it is literally destroying businesses that go there. — And yet the American public may soon …

Discussion: Raw Story, Twitchy and The Gateway Pundit

Annie Karni / New York Times:

McCarthy's Revenge Tour Rolls On, With Mixed Results … Kevin McCarthy, the former House speaker, held his leadership role for 269 days.T.J. Kirkpatrick for The New York Times — During the awkward interlude after he was ousted from the speakership but before he resigned from Congress …

NBC News:

Rep. Adam Schiff says Biden needs to ‘win overwhelmingly’ or ‘pass the torch’: Full interview — Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff (Calif.) exclusively joins Meet the Press to talk about the state of President Joe Biden's re-election campaign.

Discussion: Politico and New York Post

Laura Italiano / Business Insider:

Trump's hush-money sentencing will still happen in September despite his new immunity superpowers, New York legal experts predict — Trump wants his hush-money verdict nixed in the wake of the Supreme Court immunity opinion. — But Trump's new immunity superpowers won't derail his September sentencing, experts predict.

Bryan Schott / Salt Lake Tribune:

Mike Lee spreads fake claim of Biden medical emergency on Air Force One — Utah Senator then attacked media for being untrustworthy, during frenzied posting on social media — On Friday evening, Utah Sen. Mike Lee used his personal X/Twitter account to amplify a baseless claim …

Discussion: Alternet.org, Raw Story and PoliticusUSA

Melissa Goldin / Associated Press:
FACT FOCUS: Online reports falsely claim Biden suffered a ‘medical emergency’ on Air Force One

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Eric Lipton / New York Times:

Wildlife Protections Take a Back Seat to SpaceX's Ambitions … Starship, the upper stage of SpaceX's new rocket, at its launchpad in Boca Chica, Texas. Conservationists are concerned with the environmental impact space operations have on the area. — As Elon Musk's Starship …