memeorandum: Overconfidence at the RNC — The Republican Party is ascendant but may be more frail than it looks. (Ross Barkan/Persuasion)

7:55 PM ET, July 18, 2024

Top Items:

Obama tells allies Biden needs to seriously consider his viability — The former president, hugely influential in the party, has told associates that Biden's path to victory has significantly shrunk. — Former president Barack Obama has told allies in recent days that President Biden's path …

Axios:

Behind the Curtain: Top Dems now believe Biden will exit … - The president is being told that if he stays in, former President Trump could win in a landslide and wipe away Biden's legacy and Democrats' hopes in November. … - Democrats fully expect polls after the Republican National Convention …

NBC News:

'We're close to the end': Biden world braces for the possibility that the president steps aside — As Trump is about to give a major speech accepting the GOP nomination for president, Biden is off the campaign trail with COVID. — WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden's political world is collapsing.

Discussion: Reuters, The Guardian, DNyuz, Daily Caller News Foundation, Mediaite, Politico, New York Post and Washington Post

Reuters:

Once defiant, Biden is now ‘soul searching’ about dropping out of race, source says — U.S. President Joe Biden is taking calls to step aside as the Democratic presidential candidate seriously and multiple Democratic officials think an exit is a matter of time, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Discussion: Washington Examiner, New Republic, NBC News and The Daily Beast

Washington Post:

Pelosi has told House Democrats that Biden may soon be persuaded to exit race — The former House speaker has stepped up her behind-the-scenes role in working to persuade the president to bow out of campaign — Former House speaker Nancy Pelosi has told some House Democrats …

Discussion: Fox News, Slate, News18, The Times of Israel, The National Pulse, The Daily Beast, The Gateway Pundit, New York Post and Mediaite

Politico:

Biden allies retaliated against a Dem who called for him to step aside — The decision to remove battleground Democratic Rep. Hillary Scholten from a coordinated campaign was reversed after POLITICO contacted the Biden campaign. — Democrats in Michigan cut off a vulnerable House Democrat …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, MLive.com, New York Post and Mediaite

Fox News:

Trump won't use word ‘Biden’ once in GOP convention speech: sources — Trump address at Republican National Convention likely to more than hour long — MILWAUKEE — Former President Trump will refer several times to the “current administration” or the “current leadership” …

Discussion: CNBC, Axios, Raw Story, WHDH-TV, The Guardian and Washington Examiner

Axios:

DNC's mad dash to finalize virtual voting plan for Biden nomination … - The goal is to use their convention week to talk up their candidate and tear apart former President Trump. — Behind the nasty public debate on whether Biden should be nominated early, there are private conversations …

Discussion: Election Law Blog, CNN, Washington Examiner, Associated Press, Business Insider, CNBC, USA Today and Mother Jones

Politico:
Biden in crisis — The president is isolating at his Delaware shore home as Democratic support appears to crumble around him.

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Post and The National Pulse

New York Times:
People Close to Biden Say He Appears to Accept He May Have to Leave the Race

Discussion: The National Pulse and The Spectator World

Kimberly Leonard / Politico:
Rubio says if Biden exits the race, he should also resign as president

Discussion: Tampa Bay Times

Emily Crane / New York Post:
Biden now being ‘receptive’ about possibility of giving up 2024 re-election campaign: new report

Discussion: Fox News, HotAir, CNN, Al Jazeera, Florida Politics, The National Pulse and The Japan Times

Jeff Mason / Reuters:
Exclusive: Biden is working towards what's best for US - Sen. Hickenlooper

Discussion: The Atlantic, Raw Story, The Hill, Washington Times, USA Today, RedState and Washington Examiner

David A. Graham / The Atlantic:
The End of Biden's Candidacy Approaches

Discussion: Slate, Forbes, New York Post, The Mahablog, Politico, Just Security, Diane Ravitch's blog, CNN, Fox Business, HotAir, RedState and Semafor

Reid J. Epstein / New York Times:
Jamie Raskin, a Key Democrat, Urged Biden to Reconsider Campaign

Discussion: The Bulwark, Washington Examiner, The Daily Beast, The Hill, Politico, Axios, Baltimore Sun, DNyuz and New Republic

Lisa Kashinsky / Politico:
Sununu says ‘I told you so’ on Biden

Discussion: Washington Examiner and Fox News

Christopher Cadelago / Politico:
Democratic delegates erupt over Biden's nomination in private chats

Discussion: Raw Story, freebeacon.com and DNyuz

Reid J. Epstein / New York Times:
Sharpton Says He Told Biden That Staying in Race Could Imperil His Legacy

Discussion: Mediaite and CBS News

Matthew Yglesias / Slow Boring:
The VP is clearly the stronger candidate

Discussion: Althouse

Jonathan Karl / ABC News:
Schumer privately urged Biden to step aside in 2024 election: Sources

New York Times:
Live Updates: Expectations Rising Among Democrats That Biden Will Reconsider

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, RedState, New York Post, Lou Dobbs and Los Angeles Times

CNN:
Pelosi privately told Biden polls show he cannot win and will take down the House; Biden responded with defensiveness

Axios:

What Secret Service and FBI told Congress about attempted Trump assassination … - FBI and Secret Service officials briefed House lawmakers on Wednesday on their preliminary findings. — The Secret Service said they identified the building used in the assassination attempt as …

Discussion: Politico and Daily Caller News Foundation

House Committee on the Judiciary:

Whistleblowers Reveal Security Failures at Trump Rally — WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) revealed that whistleblowers have disclosed to the Committee that the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) did not have proper resources for President Trump's campaign event …

Discussion: Washington Times, Breitbart, The Daily Caller and RedState

Emma Colton / Fox News:
Blackburn slams Secret Service chief for ‘celebrating herself’ at RNC after Trump assassination attempt

Max Matza / BBC:
Trump gunman seen as threat before attack but was lost in crowd

Discussion: CBS News, New York Times, One America News Network, San Diego Union-Tribune, IJR, Metro.co.uk, Breitbart and News18

Wired:

J.D. Vance Left His Venmo Public. Here's What It Shows — The Republican VP nominee's Venmo network reveals connections ranging from the architects of Project 2025 to enemies of Donald Trump—and the populist's close ties to the very elites he rails against.

Discussion: The Hill, Vanity Fair, New Republic and Raw Story

Will Bunch / The Philadelphia Inquirer:

America will never be the same after Milwaukee's tent revival for the cult of Donald Trump — MILWAUKEE — I came to the American Heartland to cover a political convention, but all I found was a tent revival, Brother Trump's Traveling Salvation Show.The Republican National Convention took …

Discussion: WisPolitics

Dan Mangan / CNBC:

Hunter Biden cites Trump ruling in seeking dismissal of gun and tax cases … Lawyers for Hunter Biden on Thursday asked federal judges in California and Delaware to dismiss the criminal tax and gun cases against him in their courts, citing a recent opinion by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas …

Discussion: New York Times, Fox News, NBC News, Axios, Washington Examiner, Law & Crime, Associated Press, New York Post and PoliticusUSA

Tierney Sneed / CNN:
If the Trump classified documents case is reinstated, Judge Aileen Cannon would be difficult to remove

Discussion: Raw Story and WHDH-TV

Holly Yan / CNN:

‘Treated like a convict’: NFL legend Terrell Davis describes getting handcuffed on a plane near his kids after asking for ice — Terrell Davis and his family were looking forward to vacationing in California when pro football Hall of Famer was handcuffed and removed from a United Airlines plane - for no apparent reason.

Discussion: Denver Post, Los Angeles Times, Atlanta Black Star, Global News, The Sun, Boston Herald, Mediaite, The Root, DNyuz, CBS News and New York Daily News

CNN:

Investigators now believe account on gaming site in would-be assassin's name is fake — Investigators now believe that the Steam account in the name of the man who shot at former President Donald Trump over the weekend is fake, a US official briefed on the matter told CNN.

Discussion: Associated Press, RedState, Greensburg Tribune-Review, Los Angeles Times, Forbes, New Jersey Online, The Gateway Pundit and Washington Examiner

Robert McCoy / New Republic:

MAGA Enters Racist Meltdown Mode Over J.D. Vance's Wife … The past week has seen an outpouring of hate from the far right over the wife of Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance. The unremarkable fact that Vance is married to Usha Vance, a woman of Indian heritage, has become a fixation for white nationalists online.

Discussion: Washington Post, USA Today, Talking Points Memo, News18, Let's Address …, Right Wing Watch and Newsweek

Emma Fraser / The Daily Beast:

Brutal: ‘The Boys’ Season Finale Violently Kills a Shocking Character — SPOILER ALERT! — As is its wont, the gruesome “The Boys” season finale let loose a geyser of fake blood. But the fate of one young, progressive character is particularly shocking. — (Warning: Spoilers for The Boys season finale.)

Discussion: The Hollywood Reporter, Forbes, Breitbart, Deadline, Los Angeles Times, Variety, Hollywood Life, ComingSoon.net, Gizmodo, Washington Examiner, TVLine and The Verge

Andrew Kerr / freebeacon.com:

BlueAnon Rears Its Head: One-Third of Dems Believe Conspiracy Theory That Trump Staged Assassination Attempt — One-third of Democrats believe false conspiracy theory that Trump staged his own assassination attempt — A conspiracy theory has run unabated in Democratic circles following …

Discussion: Twitchy, Daily Mail and Fox News

Andrew O'Hehir / Salon:

Anti-party in a ghost town: Trump's undead GOP holds an un-convention — Donald Trump's Republican Party has no history, no principles and no ideology — because it's just a front — MILWAUKEE — I don't know whether the folks who tried to sell “vegan barbecue” from a booth in the strip …

Discussion: Digby's Hullabaloo