- According to The New York Times, Biden surprised President Obama with his disorganized appearance at a fundraiser in June.
- Biden is upset that Obama has not backed him despite calls from Democratic leaders for him to step down.
- Biden believes President Obama is partly behind the attacks on his age, a source close to him told The New York Times.
During a campaign fundraiser in June, President Joe Biden appeared confused onstage. The New York Times reported that the move “surprised” former President Barack Obama.
The event in question was a Los Angeles fundraiser hosted by Jimmy Kimmel that drew controversy after President Obama appeared to escort a petrified President Biden off the stage, a notion denied by the White House at the time, saying President Biden had paused to applaud.
According to an anonymous former aide to former President Obama who spoke to The Times, the former president was surprised that Biden “appeared old and confused.”
The report also cited a person close to the president as saying Biden was distraught as he recovers from COVID-19 at his Delaware home and battles numerous attacks about whether he can serve another four years as president.
Biden is most upset about Obama’s lack of support, the Times reported, a resentment that stems in part from Obama’s encouragement to Biden not to run for president in 2016 for Hillary Clinton.
But the Times also reported, citing a person close to the president, that Biden believes he is behind a wave of Democratic calls for Obama to step down. Reports have said Obama has expressed concerns about whether Biden can beat Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Biden has been privately considering dropping out of the 2024 presidential race, according to multiple reports, but his campaign insisted on Friday that he would remain in the race.
“He’s the perfect person to take on Donald Trump,” Biden’s reelection campaign chair, Jen O’Malley Dillon, said on “Morning Joe.”
Following both candidates’ poor debate performances with Trump, dozens of prominent Democratic lawmakers and donors have called on Biden to step down and be replaced by another candidate before the Democratic National Convention in August.
Representatives for Obama and Biden did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
