Former president Barack Obama has privately expressed concerns to Democrats about , and Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi privately warned Biden that Democrats could lose the ability to seize control of the House if he didnB次元官网网址檛 step away from the 2024 race, according to several people familiar with the sensitive internal matters.

Pelosi also showed Biden polling that she argued shows he likely canB次元官网网址檛 defeat , according to two of the people, who insisted on anonymity to discuss such matters.

Obama has not spoken directly to Biden, two other people said. He has conveyed to allies that Biden needs to consider the viability of his campaign but has also made clear that the decision is one Biden needs to make.

Time racing, Democrats at the highest levels are making a critical push for to reconsider , as unease grows at the White House and within the campaign at a fraught moment for the president and his party.

Biden has insisted heB次元官网网址檚 not backing down, adamant heB次元官网网址檚 the candidate who beat before and will do it again. Pressed about reports that Biden might be softening to the idea of leaving the race, his deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks said Thursday: B次元官网网址淗e is not wavering on anything.B次元官网网址�

In recent days the president has become more committed to staying in the race, according to another person familiar with the matter.

But influential Democrats from the highest levels of the party apparatus, including congressional leadership headed by Senate Majority Leader and House Democratic Leader , are sending signals of concern. Some Democrats hope Biden will assess the trajectory of the race and his legacy over the coming days.

Using mountains of data showing BidenB次元官网网址檚 standing could wipe out the ranks of Democrats in Congress, frank conversations in public and private and now the presidentB次元官网网址檚 own time off the campaign trail after , many Democrats see an opportunity to encourage a reassessment.

If Democrats are seriously preparing the extraordinary step of replacing Biden and shifting Vice President Kamala Harris at the top of the ticket, this weekend will be critical to changing the presidentB次元官网网址檚 mind, other people familiar with the private conversations said.

One said itB次元官网网址檚 now or never ahead of a planned virtual roll call to nominate the partyB次元官网网址檚 choice in early August, ahead of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Over the past week, Schumer and Jeffries, both of New York, have spoken privately to the president, candidly laying out the views of Democrats on Capitol Hill, including DemocratsB次元官网网址� concerns.

Separately, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington, spoke with the president last week armed with fresh data. The campaign chief specifically aired the concerns of front-line Democrats seeking election to the House.

And on Wednesday, California Rep. , a close ally of , called for Biden to drop his reelection bid, saying he believes itB次元官网网址檚 time to B次元官网网址減ass the torch.B次元官网网址�

Biden, in a radio interview taped just before he tested positive for COVID-19, dismissed the idea it was too late for him to recover politically, telling UnivisionB次元官网网址檚 Luis Sandoval itB次元官网网址檚 still early and many people donB次元官网网址檛 focus on the November election until September.

B次元官网网址淎ll the talk about whoB次元官网网址檚 leading and where and how, is kind of, you know B次元官网网址� everything so far between Trump and me has been basically even,B次元官网网址� he said in an excerpt of the interview released Thursday.

Some national polls do show a close race, though others suggest Trump with a lead. And some state polls have contained warning signs for Biden, too, including a recent New York Times/Siena poll that suggested a competitive race in Virginia, a state in their 2020 matchup.

While the tensions over BidenB次元官网网址檚 ability to carry on a winning campaign subsided some, particularly after and as the Republican National Convention is underway in Milwaukee, Democrats know they have limited time to resolve the party turmoil after the presidentB次元官网网址檚 faltering debate performance last month.

To be sure, many Democrats want Biden to stay in the race. And the Democratic National Committee is pushing ahead with plans for in the first week of August, ahead of , which begins Aug. 19.

Late Wednesday, ABC B次元官网网址 reported new details about BidenB次元官网网址檚 private meeting over the weekend with Schumer at the presidentB次元官网网址檚 beach home in Delaware. It said Schumer told the president it would be B次元官网网址渂etter for the Democratic Party and better for the country if he were to bow out.B次元官网网址� A Schumer spokesperson called the report B次元官网网址渋dle speculation.B次元官网网址�

White House spokesman Andrew Bates said Biden told Schumer, as well as Jeffries, that B次元官网网址渉e is the nominee of the party, he plans to win, and looks forward to working with both of them to pass his 100 days agenda to help working families.B次元官网网址�

But among Democrats nationwide, nearly two-thirds say Biden should step aside and let his party nominate a different candidate, according to . That sharply undercuts BidenB次元官网网址檚 post-debate claim that B次元官网网址渁verage DemocratsB次元官网网址� are still with him even if some B次元官网网址渂ig namesB次元官网网址� are turning on him.

Biden tested positive for COVID-19 while traveling Wednesday in Las Vegas and is experiencing B次元官网网址渕ild symptomsB次元官网网址� including B次元官网网址済eneral malaiseB次元官网网址� from the infection, the White House said. The president, who had spent the past several days campaigning, had already been scheduled to return to his Delaware beach home even before the diagnosis.

SchiffB次元官网网址檚 announcement brings to nearly 20 the number of Democratic members of Congress calling on Biden to in the wake of against Trump last month.

Schiff said that by bowing out, Biden would B次元官网网址渟ecure his legacy of leadership by allowing us to defeat Donald Trump in the upcoming election.B次元官网网址�

Schiff is a prominent Democrat on his own, and his statement will also be watched because of his proximity to .

It was Pelosi who post-debate, when she said recently that B次元官网网址渋tB次元官网网址檚 up to the presidentB次元官网网址� to decide what to do B次元官网网址� even though Biden had already fully stated he had no intention of stepping aside. The former House speaker publicly supports the president but has fielded calls from Democrats since debate night questioning whatB次元官网网址檚 next.

In response to SchiffB次元官网网址檚 comments, the Biden campaign pointed to what it called B次元官网网址渆xtensive supportB次元官网网址� for him and his reelection bid from members of Congress in key swing states, as well as from the Congressional Black and Hispanic caucuses. The campaign noted that Biden had been joined on his trip to Nevada this week by nearly a dozen Congressional Black Caucus members.