WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Joe Biden suffered a stunning blow on Wednesday when actor and leading Democratic supporter George Clooney urged him to abandon his re-election bid, while House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a senior Democratic figure, withdrew her support for his candidacy.
“I love Joe Biden,” Clooney, who hosted a star-studded fundraiser with Biden last month, wrote in the New York Times, “but the one battle he can’t win is the battle against time.
“This is shocking to say, but the Joe Biden I was with at a fundraiser three weeks ago was not the ‘big’ Joe Biden of 2010.
“He wasn’t even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same person we all witnessed at the debates.”
Biden appeared tired as he shared the stage with former President Barack Obama at a fundraiser in Los Angeles, co-hosted by Clooney and fellow film star Julia Roberts.
Trump flew directly to California from the G7 summit in Italy and blamed jet lag and a cold for his disastrous performance in a June 27 televised debate with President Donald Trump.
Biden’s bid for a second term in the White House has come under intense pressure after he slurred his words during the debate and stood with his mouth open while Trump spoke.
On Tuesday, leading Democrats generally but unenthusiastically endorsed Biden, but interventions by Speaker Pelosi and Representative Clooney set back Biden’s efforts to change course.
Pelosi, 86, a former House Speaker, said time was running out for Biden to decide whether to end his bid, despite his repeated insistence that he is committed to running.
“It’s up to the president to decide whether or not he’s going to run,” she told MSNBC.
“Time is running out and we all encourage him to make that decision.”
But Pelosi said Biden should hold off on making a final decision until after a summit in Washington this week marking NATO’s 75th anniversary.
On his way to the summit on Wednesday, Biden visited U.S. labor union leaders in an attempt to further shore up support for his reelection bid.
Biden’s appearance at the NATO meeting will be closely watched as he seeks to assure allies he will continue to provide leadership as the alliance supports Ukraine’s war against Russia.
Seven House Democrats have publicly called on Biden not to seek reelection, and several senators have also expressed concerns.
Late Tuesday, Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet became the first Senate Democrat to openly rebel against the president, saying Biden would lose if he remained in the election and likely would lose Democrats in Congress as well.
“I believe Donald Trump is going to win this election, probably in a landslide victory, and take control of the Senate and the House of Representatives,” Bennet told CNN, adding that he believes the White House has “done nothing” to indicate it plans to win the November election.
Meanwhile, Republican candidate Trump, 78, after a long silence since the June 27 debate, has gone on the offensive again, accusing Biden of concealing secrets about his health.
“This is the greatest cover-up in the history of politics,” Trump blasted at a rally in Florida on Tuesday.
The former president challenged his successor to hold another debate without a moderator and challenged him to a game of golf.
