Biden resists mounting pressure to step aside

President Joe Biden and son Hunter Biden taking a walk.

Hunter Biden, the president's son who was recently convicted in a federal gun case, joined his father at the White House Thursday evening for a Fourth of July fireworks display.

Hunter Biden was convicted in June of making a false statement in the purchase of a gun, making a false statement related to information required to be kept by a federally licensed gun dealer, and possession of a gun by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.

Biden lied on a federal form when he was asked if he was an unlawful user of a firearm or addicted to controlled substances while trying to purchase a firearm from a Delaware gun shop.

During the Fourth of July celebration, Vice President Kamala Harris praised President Biden, calling him the "extraordinary" commander in chief.

"Happy 4th of July, everyone. Happy Independence day. And today, as we celebrate freedom, as we celebrate the promise of America, we also celebrate and express our gratitude to our service members, to our veterans, to our military families. And we give thanks to our Commander in Chief, the the president of the United States, the extraordinary president of the United States, Joe Biden," Harris praised.

The president spoke briefly.

"Happy Independence Day. We got to do what our founders did. Show the world we're a nation of dignity, honor, and just devotion to one another," Biden said.

Biden continued by thanking the attendees for joining him and praising America.

"I really mean it, folks. It's all about democracy. It's all about freedom. It's all about who we are. We're the United States of America, and nothing like it exists in the world," Biden said.

Earlier in the day, Biden reassured guests at the White House that he would not be dropping out of the 2024 race, saying "I'm not going anywhere."

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and President Joe Biden.

Hours after the White House told reporters that President Biden had not had any recent medical exams, the president reportedly contradicted his press secretary by telling governors that he had a recent medical checkup.

According to the New York Times, Biden told Democratic governors during a meeting on Wednesday that he had seen the White House physician to check on the cold his campaign said that he had during the presidential debate against Trump.

Biden also reportedly told governors that he would no longer schedule events after 8 p.m. so he could "get more sleep," the outlet reported.

However, on Friday, White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said the opposite, telling reporters that Biden has not had any type of medical checkup since February.

When questioned about the seemingly contradictory comments, the White House sent the following statement to Fox News Digital:"Several days later, the President was seen to check on his cold and was recovering well," the White House press office clarified.

Fox News Digital's Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.

Read the full story by clicking here.

Joe Biden smiles from the front seat of his Corvette Stingray in a 2020 campaign video push to revitalize the American auto industry.

The Biden-Harris campaign claimed that prices at the pump are the lowest they’ve been on the 4th of July since 2021, according to a press release.

"Happy 4th of July America. Low gas prices are something for drivers to celebrate this July 4th, with costs at the pump expected to hit their lowest levels since 2021," the statement read.

The campaign cited GasBuddy, a fuel savings platform, saying that the average price of gasoline on Independence Day is expected to be $3.49 per gallon nationwide, the lowest price it's been on the busy travel holiday in three years.

"At the Biden campaign, we wish everyone safe travel and a happy holiday. Let’s celebrate declaring our independence from a tyrannical king 248 years ago and focus on stopping Donald Trump’s dreams of becoming one this November," Biden-Harris 2024 Spokesperson James Singer said.

Earlier on the 4th, the White House also boasted about the "savings" which was only a one-cent decrease in the nation's year-over-year gas prices.

GasBuddy's projection comes just a few weeks after the American Farm Bureau (AFB) said a 10-person Independence Day cookout price would average $71.22 this year, up 5% compared to last year and almost 30% higher than five years ago.

"Higher prices at the grocery store reflect a number of challenges facing America’s families. Lower availability of some cookout staples and inflation are hitting people in their wallets," AFB chief economist Roger Cryan said. "Farmers are also feeling the effects of high prices. They’re price takers, not price makers. Their share of the retail food dollar is just 15%, but they still pay elevated fuel, fertilizer and other supply prices."

Fox News Digital's Jamie Joseph contributed to this report.

Abigail Disney speaks onstage during the 32nd Anniversary Celebrating Women Breakfast at Marriott Marquis on May 14, 2019, in New York City.

Abigail Disney, an heiress to the Disney family fortune, says she is planning to stop giving donations to Democrats until President Biden drops out of the presidential race, CNBC reported.

The Disney heiress told CNBC on Thursday that she plans to withhold donations to the party she has funded for years until Biden drops out.

“I intend to stop any contributions to the party unless and until they replace Biden at the top of the ticket.  This is realism, not disrespect. Biden is a good man and has served his country admirably, but the stakes are far too high,” Abigail Disney said in a lengthy statement to CNBC. “If Biden does not step down the Democrats will lose. Of that I am absolutely certain. The consequences for the loss will be genuinely dire.”

This comes as Biden has vowed to stay in the race and even telling a crowd of military service members and their families at a 4th of July barbecue that "he wasn't going anywhere."

Fox News Digital reached out to Abigail Disney for comment.

President Biden speaks briefly at 4th of July BBQ for military service members and their families.

Following a speech to military service members and their families at the White House, President Biden once again reiterated that he's staying in the race.

Biden and First Lady Jill Biden hosted a barbecue for military service members Thursday evening. After he finished his speech, Biden spoke again with a mic.

The crowd began shouting, "We need you!' to which Biden responded, "You got me, man"

He then said, "I'm not going anywhere."

President Joe Biden has yet to call the family of Majd Kamalmaz, according to his daughter Maryam.

Fox News senior congressional correspondent Chad Pergram reports that a potential Democratic ‘mass exodus’ could convince President Biden to quit.

Fox News Digital is told that there are currently multiple letters being circulated among House Democrats calling on Biden to step aside in the election.

Fox is told that the House Democratic leadership has not seen the “letter” where around 25 House Democrats are urging the president to drop out.

It is not yet clear if a letter has been drafted or moved beyond the discussion stage, but it's described as a very fluid situation.

One of two sources who spoke with Fox News Digital said different efforts are targeting vulnerable members and those in safe seats.

“Everyone is guarded now,” said one senior House Democratic member. “People may be just doing what they believe is best for them.”

Fox News' Chad Pergram and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) leaves a caucus meeting with House Republicans on Capitol Hill May 10, 2023 in Washington, DC. The House Republicans fielded several questions from reporters about their colleague Rep. George Santos (R-NY) who was charged by federal prosecutors in a 13-count indictment that includes charges of wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds on Wednesday morning. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., says Democrats have known that President Biden has been 'incompetent for quite some time' on 'Fox News Live.'

Malliotakis said that clearly Democrats are concerned that Biden is going to be a "drag" on the ballot.

"They know that he has been incompetent for quite some time, that has had this mental instability in terms of memory. I think this is well known on Capitol Hill. I think the issue is you're only willing to acknowledge it now because he's been a drag on the polls," Malliotakis said.

Malliotakis continued saying that this is more about protecting the Democratic party and their members re-election than doing what is best for the country.

"Clearly the person who is on that debate stage the other night, Joe Biden, is not the person who is running the country and the question is, who is? Who is working behind the scenes on this terrible agenda that has really hurt American families?" Malliotakis said.

Malliotakis said her view is that even if Biden is replaced with Kamala Harris, she says it's simply replacing incognitos with incompetence.

President Joe Biden salutes while arriving during an event in the Indian Treaty Room of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, Nov. 27, 2023.

President Biden was "clearly making a joke" when he said it was "just my brain" in response to Gov. Josh Green of Hawaii, a physician, asking about the status of his health, Biden's Campaign Manager Jen O'Malley Dillon told Fox News Thursday.

O'Malley Dillon then told Fox News' Jacqui Heinrich, "all kidding aside."

Green recently questioned Biden about his health during a gathering of Democratic governors as concerns continue to rise about the status of his health.

Biden answered that his health was "fine" and then said "it's just my brain," according to a report by The New York Times.

Multiple governors who were in attendance of the meeting also expressed concerns over Biden's health.

Following his debate against former president Donald Trump, many Democrats are now questioning whether Biden should continue his 2024 presidential campaign.

The issue was the main topic of discussion during a call that the governors had on Monday, The Times reported.

President Biden speaking at a podium

During a meeting with Democratic governors on Wednesday, President Biden reportedly said he would not be scheduling any more events after 8 p.m. so that he could 'get more sleep,' according to The New York Times.

His comments left several governors shocked and frustrated, according to the outlet.

Biden's comments come as criticism about his health continues to be a grave concern across the country.

A White House spokesman confirmed to The Times that Biden had seen the White House physician to check on the cold his campaign claimed he had during the presidential debate last Tuesday. However, on Friday, White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said the opposite, telling reporters that Biden has not had any type of medical checkup since February.

Former President Trump wished Americans a "Happy Fourth of July" in a social media post before tearing into his Democratic rival, President Biden, and mocking his debate performance.

"Happy Fourth of July to all, including to our highly incapable 'President,' who uses Prosecutors to go after his Political Opponent, who choked like a dog during the Debate but tried to pretend it was 'International Travel' (only 12 days rest!) and, when that gig was up, he blamed it on a 'cold,'" Trump wrote. 

"Therefore, why would anyone say he’s cognitively challenged? Also, respects to our potentially new Democrat Challenger, Laffin’ Kamala Harris. She did poorly in the Democrat Nominating process, starting out at Number Two, and ending up defeated and dropping out, even before getting to Iowa, but that doesn’t mean she’s not a 'highly talented' politician! Just ask her Mentor, the Great Willie Brown of San Francisco. Someone else that I have to compliment is a Deranged Biden Prosecutor named Jack Smith, who has become a Legend in his own mind for all of those cases he has lost. The Corrupt Prosecutors are working hard for Crooked Joe, but it will never be enough — MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" 

Netflix founder and Co-CEO Reed Hastings speaks during the New York Times DealBook Summit in the Appel Room at the Jazz At Lincoln Center on November 30, 2022 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Reed Hastings, the co-founder of Netflix and a Democratic Party megadonor, has called for President Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential campaign in the wake of the CNN Presidential Debate.

Hastings told the New York Times on Wednesday that Biden "needs to step aside to allow a vigorous Democratic leader to beat Trump and keep us safe and prosperous”.

With a net worth of $4.8 billion, according to Forbes, Hastings is one of the first major Democratic Party donors to urge Biden to step aside since last Thursday's debate. 

White House aides have reportedly worked overtime to assuage concerns from donors and party allies that Biden, 81, is incapable of beating former President Trump after his age showed when the two faced off on stage in Atlanta.

Even so, two House Democrats have already come forward to call on Biden to step aside and as many as 25 others are reportedly waiting to see if he can turn around his declining poll numbers before doing likewise. 

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who once wrote about what it feels like to work for faltering political candidates, says it feels "totally different now" to be working for President Biden.

An excerpt of her 2019 book went viral this week that was headlined, "What it's like working for a doomed presidential candidate." Jean-Pierre responded to the resurfaced writing this week by praising her embattled boss, who is facing calls to step down from some Democrats and liberal pundits after his alarming debate performance.

"I can tell you now feels totally different, working for the best President in modern history, whose agenda of fighting for the middle class and protecting freedoms and the rule of law unites the American people," Jean-Pierre told Fox News Digital.

In an excerpt of the book published in Salon, the then-MSNBC political analyst provided her account of working for both former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards and former Rep. Anthony Weiner, whose careers both eventually collapsed over sex scandals.

"What makes a politician successful is also what can turn them — sometimes — into entitled narcissists who believe they can get away with things mere mortals cannot," Jean-Pierre wrote in ""Moving Forward: A Story of Hope, Hard Work, and the Promise of America."

"There's nothing more dispiriting than working on a dying campaign. The atmosphere resembles one of those sad birth­day balloons with the air slowly seeping out as it deflates," she wrote.

Jean-Pierre's article resurfaced as she serves as chief spokesperson for a president whose fitness for office is under its most serious scrutiny yet. Biden's re-election chances are being questioned by a growing number of Democrats after his widely criticized performance at Thursday’s presidential debate that raised more questions about his health and mental viability.

Jean-Pierre admitted Tuesday that Biden had a "bad night," but insisted that he "knows how to do the job" of president. 

Fox News Digital's Gabriel Hays contributed to this update.

Barbara Boxer poses at the opening night of the new Andrew Lloyd Webber Musical "Bad Cinderella" on Broadway at The Imperial Theatre on March 23, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Glikas/WireImage)

Former California Sen. Barbara Boxer said President Biden should get two weeks to demonstrate to the American people that he's fit to remain president amid concerns over his ableness.

Boxer told the Los Angeles Times that Biden deserves another chance to show voters that his debate performance was a one-time thing, not his daily status quo.

“The man has done it, time and time again,” Boxer said, referring to Biden in an interview published Wednesday. “Every time he’s been counted out, he’s come back. Can he do it one more time? I don’t know the answer. But out of respect and admiration for what he’s done, let’s give him the time to do it.”

“And if he can’t, he can’t,” Boxer said. “And there will be someone else.”

Boxer, who served in the Senate from 1993 to 2017, said she was surprised by her former colleague's halting and tired performance in the debate with former President Trump.

"I think the president owes the county an explanation," she said. 

A top House Democrat has warned that his party would suffer if Vice President Kamala Harris is overlooked should President Biden withdraw from his re-election bid.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., who chaired the House Jan. 6 committee, told Axios that Democrats cannot easily sideline Harris if they want to argue that Biden's presidency has been good for the country. 

He said Harris is "incredibly strong ... you can't say Biden has done a good job without saying she's done a good job." 

For Harris to be passed over for the nomination "would be the kiss of death for the party," he said, per Axios.

Thompson was one of many Democratic officials who emphasized to the outlet that Harris is the party's only viable candidate for the presidency if Biden steps aside. She alone would have access to the Biden-Harris campaign's funds, as well as endorsements from the Biden family, Obamas and Clintons.

Additionally, it would be a bad look for Democrats to tell the first woman vice president, first Black American vice president and first South Asian vice president she should not be the party standard-bearer. To do so would risk revolt from the progressive base and could alienate Black voters. 

Republican Rep. Zach Nunn of Iowa warned the prospect of a Kamala Harris presidency is "more frightening" than a second term for President Biden in a TV interview on Thursday.

Appearing on "Fox & Friends," Nunn related that several of his Democratic colleagues have told him they think Biden will no longer be their party's nominee after his widely panned debate performance against former President Trump. 

"They're okay with that. And they're ready for President Trump to win. They want their shot four years from now," Nunn said. "Look, the reality is that Harris is a danger to not only the Democratic Party, but would be a far worse leader in the White House." 

He went on to raise concerns about Biden's health and ability to serve in office for the remaining seven months of his first term.

"We saw President Biden on television for 90 minutes, and it frightened the entire country. But the reality is we've got this man trying to lead the greatest nation in the world for the next six months. That should scare everyone, regardless of party. This is a bipartisan concern for his health, yes,  but also for the health of the entire country right now. Being under this man's watch is a danger to all of us." 

Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., speaks during an enrollment ceremony for the Great American Outdoors Act in the Capitol in Washington on Thursday, July 23, 2020. (Photo by Caroline Brehman/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

A second House Democrat has come forward to urge President Biden to abandon his re-election campaign amid a panic over Biden's disastrous debate performance.

Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz., on Wednesday told the New York Times that if Biden remains his party's nominee, "I’m going to support him, but I think that this is an opportunity to look elsewhere.”

He said Biden must "shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seat — and part of that responsibility is to get out of this race.”

Grijalva, a left-wing hardliner who formerly co-chaired the Congressional Progressive Caucus, joins Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, who on Tuesday became the first Capitol Hill Democrat to publicly call on Biden to exit the race.

Several other House Democrats have raised concerns over Biden's electability versus former President Trump but they have stopped short of calling on him to drop out. 

"About 50 million Americans tuned in and watched that debate. I was one of them for about five very painful minutes. We all saw what we saw, you can't undo that, and the truth, I think, is that Biden is going to lose to Trump," Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez, D-Wash., said in an intervie with KATU-TV earlier this week. 

Others who've raised concerns about Biden's performance include Reps. Jared Golden, D-Maine, Summer Lee, D-Penn., Seth Moulton, D-Mass., Mike Quigley, D-Ill., James Clyburn, D-S.C., and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. 

President Biden discussed his poor performance at the CNN Presidential Debate on Wisconsin talk radio Wednesday morning, admitting, "I screwed up." 

"I had a bad night. And the fact of the matter is that, you know, it was I screwed up. I made a mistake," Biden said on the Earl Ingram Show.

"But I learned from my father: when you get knocked down, just get back up. Get back up. And, you know, we're going to win this election. We're going to beat Donald Trump."

Biden is facing the roughest stretch of his more than yearlong campaign for a second term in the White House. This, after his halting delivery and stumbling answers at the debate with Trump in Atlanta on Thursday, sparked widespread panic in the Democratic Party and spurred calls from political pundits, editorial writers and some party donors for Biden to step aside as the party's 2024 standard-bearer.

Additionally, in the past two days, a small but increasing number of House Democrats have also urged the president to end his re-election bid.

Vice President Kamala Harris arrives for a speech at the East Las Vegas Community Center on June 28, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Bizuayehu Tesfaye/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Vice President Kamala Harris made an appearance at the BET Awards last weekend that one magazine called a "cringe as hell" attempt to appeal to Black voters. 

When asked what she’d been hearing about the upcoming election by actress Taraji P. Henson, Harris replied, "Yeah girl, I’m out here in these streets. And let me tell you, you’re right, Taraji. There is so much at stake in this moment. The majority of us believe in freedom and equality. But these extremists, as they say, they not like us," paying homage to 17-time Grammy winner, rapper Kendrick Lamar’s ‘diss track’ to Canadian rapper Drake, ‘Not Like Us.’"

Complex magazine called the move "unflinchingly corny" while comparing it to past exploits of 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

"If Hillary Clinton is the Ken Griffey Jr. of pandering, then it looks like Kamala is becoming the Barry Bonds of it," the magazine wrote.

Jayson Buford, a journalist contributing to the hip-hop publication, added that Clinton’s attempts at pandering to Black voters were "flattening the glaring issues Black people had" and suggested that Harris can't relate to the problems they face.

"The true humiliation of attempting to garner votes she didn’t deserve was what caused Clinton’s eventual downfall in the election. Voters didn’t show up for her like they did former president Barack Obama. Instead of campaigning in areas in the Rust Belt that were on the fence — states Obama had won — she talked about carrying hot sauce on her bag on ‘The Breakfast Club’," Buford wrote. 

"The community’s impartial distrust in her cultural knowledge is like a Hulk Hogan headlock for her political career," Buford continued.  "[This song] is supposed to be a celebration of community in the face of the interloper that can only wish to be us, but can’t totally sell the drastically Black mindset that the men and women with Black skin have. Kamala Harris, the former district attorney who was successful in increasing conviction rates, doesn’t fit what (hopefully) Kendrick Lamar had in mind when he made that song."

Fox News Digital's Alba Cuebas-Fantauzzi contributed to this update.

House Republicans are crying foul over reported revelations that first son Hunter Biden has been sitting in on President Biden's White House meetings in recent days.

"Joe and Hunter Biden have a record of selling their last name to foreign adversaries like Russia and China. Having Hunter now engaged in official, executive business only further enhances the urgency for transparency and accountability regarding the Biden family's corrupt business dealings," House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., told Fox News Digital on Wednesday.

Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., called Hunter Biden "a walking national security threat."

"He's raked in more than $20 million from foreign entities, including the CCP, for the Biden [family]. He's also the owner of the FBI-investigated laptop from hell. … Does Hunter have the clearance necessary to sit in on high-level White House meetings with his dad?" Steube told Fox News Digital.

It comes after NBC News reported that the president's son has sat in on meetings between Biden and his top White House aides in recent days.

He began joining the sessions after Biden returned from Camp David on Monday, according to the report.

"Hunter Biden wants Joe Biden to remain president more than anyone in America. He should be worried [about] what a new attorney general would consider criminal activity under a possible Trump administration. No more sweetheart deals the moment his father leaves office," said Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, R-Wis.

Fox News Digital's Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this update.

A new CNN poll reveals what voters think are the main differences between Democratic President Biden and presumptive Republican nominee former President Trump.

The survey found that 91% of registered voters said they see important differences between the two candidates. The contrast between them, according to voters, has more to do with character and personal traits like honesty, or their ability to handle the job rather than any policy issues. 

Among those who said there are significant differences between Biden and Trump, the most frequently mentioned distinctions were honesty and integrity (17%), ability to handle the job or mental fitness (15%), love for the country or patriotism (10%), perceived self-serving or egotistical motivations (10%) and effectiveness or performance in office (8%), the results showed.  

Biden supporters surveyed were more likely to mention honesty or integrity as the chief difference between him and Trump, with about 18% of respondents saying Trump had self-serving or egotistical motivations for running for president. 

“Trump is a low down lying scoundrel who only cares about himself;  Biden, I think, really does care for the American people,” said one Biden supporter who lives in South Carolina and is in her 70s. 

Trump supporters said the biggest difference between him and Biden was mental fitness, or ability to handle the job, which was a concern for 24% of voters overall.

“Joe Biden is the first President in my lifetime who is mentally unfit to be our President,” said one Trump supporter from Texas in his 70s. “In my opinion he has no [idea] on what is going on in this country and is not capable of making a sound decision in regards to the best interest of the USA.”

Former government officials said they were unsure if they would put President Biden in a meeting room with a foreign adversary following last week's disastrous debate performance, according to a reporter.

During a roundtable discussion on "Inside Politics with Dana Bash," New York Times White House correspondent Zolan Kanno-Youngs said European officials who recently met with Biden made remarks about his "decline."

Kanno-Youngs also said officials would crowd around Biden when he entered a room to prevent him from trailing off.

"We talked to, as well, officials who said, look, if I was still working for President Biden and the U.S. government, they weren't sure if they would put him in a meeting with a foreign adversary," he said.

"Oh my God," Bash said quietly as Kanno-Youngs finished his sentence.

Biden, the oldest president in the nation's history at age 81, is facing the roughest stretch of his bid for a second term in the White House.

His halting delivery and stumbling answers during the CNN Presidential Debate last Thursday sparked widespread panic in the Democratic Party and spurred calls from political pundits, editorial writers and party donors for Biden to step aside as the party's 2024 standard-bearer.

Biden recently blamed a recent series of trips to Europe for his rocky performance at the presidential debate, telling an audience at a campaign fundraiser in Virginia last night that he "wasn’t very smart" for "traveling around the world a couple times" beforehand. The president, however, spent two days in Delaware and six in Camp David between the back-to-back travel and the debate.

Fox News Digital's Nikolas Lanum contributed to this update.

Former Obama presidential adviser Van Jones says Democrats have moved on from discussions about potentially replacing President Biden at the top of the party’s 2024 ticket – to now actively plotting on how they can get him to step aside.

Jones says the party is now in "full-scale panic" behind the scenes as President Biden faces mounting pressure to abandon his re-election bid following his highly criticized debate performance against former President Trump last week. 

"I understand people want to defend him and protect him and give him the space and the dignity to make his own choice," Jones said on CNN Wednesday, referring to Biden.

"But there is a big conversation happening right now about how this happens – not whether."

Jones claimed the circumstances are akin to former President Trump where his surrogates would vouch for him in public, but behind the scenes it would be different. 

"I just got to be honest, everybody comes on the air and says all this great stuff but behind the scenes, it’s full-scale panic," Jones said. "People are passing around legal memos, PDFs are flying back and forth on WhatsApp, trying to figure out, what are the options? How can you replace Biden? How do you get him to do it in a way where he feels respected, as he should be respected?"

Jones inferred that the party’s nominee would be Vice President Harris, with conversations now moving to who would be her running mate.

Fox News Digital's Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.

Entrepreneur and Democratic donor Dmitri Mehlhorn defended President Biden as the party's best bet to keep the White House in 2024 after saying in a private phone call that Biden is a much better candidate than Vice President Kamala Harris. 

In the leaked call, Mehlhorn said that Harris is "more threatening" to swing voters than a "dead Joe Biden, or a comatose Joe Biden." 

"That particular quote was only in the context of an extreme case," Mehlhorn told "Fox & Friends" co-host Lawrence Jones. "I was trying to make the point that Joe Biden has a brand, a reputation with the American public that is incredibly helpful against Donald Trump." 

"Joe Biden is patriotic and honest and decent, no matter what anyone has said," he added, contrasting Biden with Trump's "authoritarian movement." 

Pressed on whether Biden can handle the job as president after his poor performance at the CNN Presidential Debate, Mehlhorn defended Biden's mental acuity and accused former President Donald Trump of being unable to "distinguish between fact and fiction." 

Gretchen Whitmer, governor of Michigan, speaks following a tour of the Holtec Palisades Training Center in Covert, Michigan, US, on Wednesday, March 27, 2024.

As calls for President Biden to drop out of the 2024 presidential race increase in the wake of last week's presidential debate, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer may be a top pick to replace him on the ticket, despite denying involvement in a "Draft Gretch" shadow campaign. But her chances against former President Donald Trump in November would be an uphill battle, according to one expert.

"She's doing the right thing in terms of denying that she's interested because she can't appear to be disloyal," said Tevi Troy, a former White House aide and deputy secretary of Health and Human Services under the Bush administration, in an interview with Fox News Digital.

"I had a politician friend of mine describe this to me as the Cinderella at the ball scenario. Everyone knows that the clock is running out and that at midnight everything changes, but at the same time, the prince is handsome, and the champagne is flowing, so you're enjoying the dancing. But the smart people are kind of eyeing the door and making sure they're positioned at the door while they're dancing around midnight."

Whitmer, who won re-election in 2022 by a double-digit margin, has previously hinted at interest in a presidential run and has reportedly vaulted to the top of the list in terms of donor preference in recent weeks.

Online supporters have been pushing a "Draft Gretch" message, and Politico reported after the debate that Whitmer spoke with Democratic Party leadership and disavowed that movement while disagreeing with reports that said she warned Biden has no chance of winning Michigan, calling it "total bulls---."

"I am proud to support Joe Biden as our nominee and I am behind him 100 percent in the fight to defeat Donald Trump," Whitmer said in a statement on Monday. "Not only do I believe Joe can win Michigan, I know he can because he’s got the receipts."

Fox News Digital's Jamie Joseph contributed to this update.

Another major city newspaper has called on President Biden to abandon his re-election bid following his highly criticized debate performance against former President Trump last week.

The Boston Globe editorial board on Wednesday published a column arguing that at this point, Biden running for office is too big of a risk, and that he must step aside soon so that a more suitable Democratic candidate can be nominated. 

"For the good of the country, his party, and his legacy, Biden must do this. And soon," it declared.

The Globe’s editorial began by slamming Biden’s team for not being able to "adequately" explain "why his performance was historically bad, beyond that he had a cold." It went on to reject his allies’ defense that keeping Biden is still the country's least risky move to beating Trump and that trying to select a new party nominee would be too risky.

"Maybe. But in the view of this board, and a growing number of other editorial pages and Democratic officials, the greater risk lies in allowing Biden to continue as the party’s standard-bearer," the board wrote. "Serious questions are now in play about his ability to complete the arduous work of being leader of the free world. Can he negotiate with a hostile Republican Congress, dangerous foreign powers, or even fractious rivals within his own Cabinet? The nation’s confidence has been shaken."

President Biden’s official White House X account appeared to feature a gaffe of its own Tuesday afternoon in a now-deleted post.

@POTUS was trying to comment on a Louisiana federal judge issuing a preliminary injunction on the White House’s ban on new liquefied natural gas exports. The lawsuit was previously filed by a group of 16 Republican states opposing Biden’s efforts to limit energy projects.

When remarking on the ruling, however, Biden’s account mistakenly referred to it as a "Supreme Court ruling" rather than a federal court ruling.

"Yesterday's Supreme Court ruling on our pause on Liquified Natural Gas exports is incredibly disappointing. I'll continue doing everything I can to protect our environment and our communities, while ensuring America’s energy security," the post read.

The original post was deleted and can no longer be seen and has since been replaced with a new post that says, "Yesterday's court ruling on our pause on Liquified Natural Gas exports is incredibly disappointing. I'll continue doing everything I can to protect our environment and our communities, while ensuring America’s energy security."

Fox News Digital's Lindsay Kornick contributed to this update.

A new national poll indicates that former President Trump's lead over President Biden in their 2024 election rematch is widening in the wake of last week's heavily criticized debate performance by Biden.

And the survey, released Wednesday by The New York Times and Siena College, spotlights a surge in concerns that the 81-year-old Biden, the oldest president in the nation's history, is unable to govern the nation effectively.

According to the poll, Trump now tops Biden 49%-43% among likely voters nationwide, which is a three-point swing toward the presumptive GOP presidential nominee from the previous New York Times/Siena College poll from just a week ago.

And Trump's lead over Biden edges up to 49%-41% among the larger pool of registered voters.

A couple of hours after the New York Times/Siena College poll release, another well-known national survey made similar headlines.

Trump topped Biden 48%-42% among registered voters in a Wall Street Journal poll. The former president's lead over the Democratic incumbent in the White House was up from a two-point edge in February.

Fox News Digital's Paul Steinhauser contributed to this update.

US President Joe Biden speaks following an operational briefing at the DC Emergency Operations Center in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, July 2, 2024.

President Biden's campaign claimed former President Trump wants to "Make America a Monarchy Again" in an Independence Day statement. 

The Democratic campaign referred to Trump as a "dictator" and asserted the presumptive Republican nominee wants to "rip away" American freedoms. 

“Today is a day to celebrate the freedoms Donald Trump is trying to rip away, to honor the troops Trump has called ‘suckers’ and ‘losers,’ and to mark the birth of our democracy as convicted felon Donald Trump fights to make himself a dictator," Biden-Harris 2024 Spokesperson Sarafina Chitika said.

“This July Fourth, the stakes of the election ahead couldn’t be higher—and everything we value as Americans is on the line. Voters will be faced with a decision between Joe Biden—who has fought to protect our freedoms, our democracy, and our troops– and a wannabe despot who only cares about himself. The choice could not be more clear.”

Former President Donald Trump apparently lambasted President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris during what appears to be a leaked video from a golf course.

The tweet posted by The Daily Beast shows Trump, the 78-year-old presumptive Republican presidential nominee, sitting in a golf cart with his son, Barron Trump, as the former president blasts the 81-year-old Biden.

Trump is seen at the beginning of the video holding a handful of cash and asking folks, “How did I do with the debate the other night?” 

“We kicked that old, broken down pile of crap,” Trump is heard saying to those surrounding his golf cart before handing out bills. “He’s a bad guy.

“He just quit, you know — he’s quitting the race,” Trump kept saying. “I got him out — and that means we have Kamala.”

“I think she’s going to be better. She’s so bad. She’s so pathetic. She’s so f--king bad.” 

Trump then redirected focus back to Biden's dealing with Russia and China.

“Can you imagine that guy dealing with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin? And the president of China — who’s a fierce person. He’s a fierce man, very tough guy,” Trump said of Xi Jinping. 

“They just announced he’s probably quitting. Just keep knocking him out, huh?” 

Trump then faced forward in his cart and drove away. It's unclear which golf course the video was taken.

Some members of the White House press corps who have regular exposure to President Biden are now admitting they were "turned off" from exposing his mental decline before last week's debate in part because of the attention it has got from "right-wing media."

Since Biden's shocking debate performance, the legacy media has faced intense backlash from critics accusing them of participating in a cover-up on behalf of the president.

CNN reported Tuesday that reporters working from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. are now expressing regret for not pursuing the political bombshell more seriously.

However, some are admitting they didn't want to feed into the "right-wing talking point" about 81-year-old Biden.

"Biden’s age was also a right-wing talking point for years, something the White House was quick to point out to reporters, which may have inadvertently turned off any serious investigation," CNN reported. 

The report accused "right-wing media figures" of sharing "deceptively edited clips" of Biden, citing the one from the G7 Summit where Biden stepped away from other world leaders to give a thumbs up to parachutists off-camera, prompting Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to corral him back to the group for a photo-op, rejecting allegations he was "wandering off."

"The right-wing media was calling him senile from day one, and that wasn’t true," one unnamed reporter told CNN. "Then whenever you report on the age you were in some ways solidifying, giving credence to some people that were actually of bad faith."

Fox News Digital's Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this update.

President Biden and his allies have released several reasons for his poor performance in the presidential debate, but one reporter on Wednesday argued their explanations don’t make sense.

Biden's showing in last week’s presidential debate has sent the Democratic Party into a panic about his chances in November against former President Trump. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in the following days maintained that the president’s poor debate performance was due to his having "a cold" and echoed his own explanation from Tuesday night — that he was still recovering from "jet lag" following his trip to Europe for the G-7 summit. 

"It was not his best night. He had a cold. He was jetlagged," she said. "You heard directly from the president about this. And when he gets knocked down, he gets right back up."

But when asked about the "evolving messaging from the White House" on CNN, Axios national political reporter Alex Thompson argued that the excuses don’t hold up.

"I mean, we really don‘t have enough time in the segment to go through the shifting explanations, because it is — listen, they didn‘t even say that he had a cold until an hour into the debate," he said. "Then, earlier this week — you know, Joe Biden has actually really never even referenced that he had a cold. Then Karine Jean-Pierre said that he actually had no cold medication when he said he had a cold."

Thompson continued, "Then he said, ‘Oh, it’s really about the travel.’ But then you also have to remember that he was already in the Eastern Time Zone for about 10 days before the debate. Yes, he traveled a lot in early June, but they arranged this to have a lot of downtime."

"The White House has still not been able to try to hone in on an explanation for why Joe Biden at the debate could not even string simple sentences together," he added.

Fox News Digital's Alexander Hall contributed to this update.

WASHINGTON, DC July 3, 2024: Mateo Zavala, 14 hold up a sign outside of the North Lawn of the White House on Wednesday July 3, 2024. The signs say "We love you, Joe but it's time to End your candidacy". (Photo by Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

President Biden and his top officials say they have accepted an ultimatum from the Democratic Party that the president must demonstrate to the nation he is fit for office or face a concerted effort to have him bow out of the race.

Critics tell The Washington Post they are unnerved by the lack of urgency from within the Biden administration after his disastrous debate performance ignited calls from within his own party to step down.

One senior campaign adviser called Biden’s reticence “a deafening silence.”

“I think the onus is really on Biden right now to be very candid with all of us privately, not publicly, not that we’re going to tell reporters, but to be very candid with us privately about what happened, what is the larger issue? Can we get through this?” Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill., told The Post. "We do need more than emails of polling briefs from White House legislative affairs directors right now to assuage those concerns.”

Earlier Wednesday, the Biden campaign sent out an email to supporters clarifying that the president had no plans to back out of the race.

President Biden is "absolutely not" considering dropping out of the 2024 presidential race, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Wednesday. 

The White House has maintained Biden will continue running for a second term, even amid pressure from Democrats and former staffers and allies to step aside. 

A New York Times report was published Wednesday morning suggesting that Biden had spoken privately with confidants about the possibility of dropping out of the race.  

But when asked during the briefing if Biden would drop out of the race, Jean-Pierre was defiant. 

"Absolutely not," she said. "And you heard, I think, I believe directly from the campaign as well." 

Jean-Pierre maintained that the president’s poor debate performance was due to his having "a cold" and echoed his own explanation from Tuesday night — that he was still recovering from "jet lag" following his trip to Europe for the G-7 summit. 

"It was not his best night. He understands that it is fair for people to ask that question, but we cannot forget his record and what he’s been able to do. We cannot forget how he has been able to deliver for the American people for almost four years," she said. "That matters too. And he has the most historic record, the most in modern politics, and that should matter."

Jean-Pierre said Biden "wants to continue to do that work." 

"A lot of what’s on his agenda is very much popular with the majority of the American people, whether it is continuing to build a strong economic — economic policies — he’s done that, creating new jobs — he’s done that — 15 million jobs. He wants to work on that and continue to do that. And so he wants to continue to deliver, expanding health care — all of these things he believes is important," she said. "He wants to make sure that people do not forget about the record that he has been able to lay out on behalf of the American people."