Biden is now 'receptive' to pleas to step down despite his continued public defiance

President Joe Biden has become 'more receptive' to the idea of stepping aside and allowing a younger Democrat take on Donald Trump in November, according to new reports. 

Biden, 81, has been under pressure to drop his bid for a second term since his disastrous debate performance against the Republican nominee in June. The president stumbled through answers and regularly appeared to lose focus.

These latest reports, by both CNN and The New York Times, come as Biden appeared frail while stepping off of Air Force One following his Covid-19 diagnosis in Las Vegas.

CNN earlier reported that Rep. Nancy Pelosi has told Biden she doesn't believe he can win re-election.  

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have spoken about their concerns over Biden's chances against Trump. So far, Rep. Adam Schiff of California is the most prominent Democrat to call for Biden to take himself off of the ticket. 

A 'senior Democratic' source told CNN that 'conversations on the Hill are continuing' regarding Biden's fate.  

'He’s being receptive. Not as defiant as he is publicly. He's gone from saying, "Kamala can't win," to "Do you think Kamala can win?" It's still unclear where he gong to land but seems to be listening,' the source said. 

The Times echoed CNN's scoop in reporting that among the questions that Biden has been asking of his inner circle, is 'how Vice President Kamala Harris could win.' 

The Times also quotes an unnamed source as saying Biden 'is willing to listen' to alternatives to his candidacy.   

CNN reported that when Pelosi spoke to Biden over the phone about polling data, the president pushed back prompting the long-serving Democrat to ask for Mike Donlion, one of Biden's most trusted advisers to get on the phone. 

For their part, Biden's campaign's official line remains that Biden will be the nominee. 

'If the facts matter – and they should – here is one: President Biden is the Democratic nominee and he is going to win this November,' spokesman Kevin Munoz told the network.

The party appears to be going ahead with a virtual vote to nominate Biden in August.

The move to schedule the roll call, which would come weeks before the Democratic National Convention opens in Chicago on Aug. 19, follows nearly 20 Democratic members of Congress calling on Biden to withdraw.

ABC News reported new details about Biden’s private meeting over the weekend with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer at his beach home in Delaware. 

It said Schumer told the president it would be 'better for the Democratic party, and better for the country if he were to bow out.' 

A Schumer spokesperson called the report 'idle speculation. Leader Schumer conveyed the views of his caucus directly to President Biden on Saturday.'

White House spokesman Andrew Bates said Biden told Schumer, as well as House Jeffries, that 'he 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.' 

Among Democrats nationwide, nearly two-thirds say Biden should step aside and let his party nominate a different candidate, according to a new AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll — sharply undercutting Biden’s post-debate claim that 'average Democrats' are still with him even if some 'big names' are turning on him.

Biden tested positive for COVID-19 while traveling Wednesday in Las Vegas and is experiencing 'mild symptoms' including “general malaise” from the infection, the White House said.

'While the choice to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden’s alone, I believe it is time for him to pass the torch,' Schiff said in a statement. 'And in doing so, secure his legacy of leadership by allowing us to defeat Donald Trump in the upcoming election.'