Should President Biden drop out of the race?
That question was considered a fringe conspiracy theory only 24 hours ago, but it's the question Democrats are wrestling with after Biden's disastrous debate performance reinforced fears he's too old to serve a second term.
The White House and the Biden campaign are trying to shut it down, saying Biden's all in and that Democratic talk of replacing him will only help elect former President Trump.
At a campaign rally in Raleigh, N.C., Friday afternoon, a more-spirited Biden struck a self-deprecating tone about his performance in front of a revved-up crowd:
"I know I'm not a young man, to state the obvious," Biden said. "I don't walk as easy as I used to. I don't speak as smooth as I used to. I don't debate as well as I used to, but I know what I do know. I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong and I know how to do this job. I know how to get things done."
Democrats went into full-on meltdown mode Thursday night after the debate exposed a potentially cataclysmic weakness for Biden that had previously only been whispered about by the news media and Washington insiders.
"His biggest issue was to prove to the American people that he had the energy, the stamina — and he didn't do that," Biden's former communications director Kate Bedingfield said on CNN.
Now, some of Biden's friends and allies are discussing alternatives.
Several of former President Obama's top lieutenants in his administration said the party must face the hard facts and consider potential replacements.
"We have to beat Donald Trump. We have to have a nominee who can do that," former Obama speechwriter Jon Favreau said on X. "And since we haven't had the convention yet, it would be absurd if Democrats didn't at least have a serious discussion about whether Joe Biden - who's a wonderful human being and has been a great president - is up for the job."
The analysis from cable news anchors and pundits, many of whom call themselves close friends with Biden, was somber but authoritative.
They expressed sadness for the state of politics and admiration for the president, before acknowledging that Democrats must consider whether he's their best option to go up against Trump.
Biden is a big fan of MSNBC's "Morning Joe." If he tuned in Friday morning, he'd have heard anchor Joe Scarborough say Trump will win "unless there's a change" on the Democratic ticket.
Top print outlets, from The Atlantic to The New York Times, were flooded with op-eds from columnists calling on Biden to walk away.
While many Democrats on Capitol Hill have privately voiced exasperation to reporters about the debate, Biden's allies are striving to stay level-headed on his place atop the ticket, at least in public.
Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) responded to calls for Biden to leave the ticket by saying: "Stay the course, chill out."
The real test is whether vulnerable Democrats running for reelection will seek distance from Biden on the campaign trail, with both the House and Senate up for grabs in November.
There are only 52 days until the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, which was already primed to be a headache for Biden, who has faced fierce protests from his left flank over his handling of the Israel-Hamas war.
Biden has shown no willingness to consider stepping down, and his allies are calling for calm and perspective.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) called the chatter "unhelpful and unnecessary."
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), who suffered a stroke during his campaign for Senate in 2022 but still pulled out a victory, had choice words for panicked Democrats:
"I refuse to join the Democratic vultures on Biden's shoulder after the debate. No one knows more than me that a rough debate is not the sum total of the person and their record," Fetterman posted on the social platform X. "Chill the f‑‑‑ out."
A bright spot for Democrats: Fewer than 50 million watched the debate, about 20 million fewer than watched the first debate between Biden and Trump in 2020.
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