Biden’s shaky performance in the June 27 presidential debate against Republican nominee Donald Trump led even some of his closest allies to question whether he could sustain a full campaign.
In fact, that episode added fuel to the fire of a latent movement within the Democratic Party that questions the wisdom of his second term.
In a matter of days, Biden went from being the party’s leading figure to becoming a liability. He became the first sitting president to forgo a possible reelection since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968.
These were some of the key moments that led Biden to make the decision to resign.
Biden himself set the debate in motion, after telling radio host Howard Stern in April that he would talk to Trump, despite concerns from some of his Democratic allies that a debate might do little to improve his chances or even cast an unflattering light on him.
Some Biden advisers thought they had pulled off a coup by agreeing to a debate in June.
They worked with broadcaster CNN to shape the rules they believed favored them and on May 15 agreed to hold two debates, including the first on June 27.
Some Biden advisers thought an early debate would be helpful in convincing voters that there was no other anti-Trump option in the race, but also to cushion the blow of any lackluster performance by the president.
They thought the format — no audience to amplify Trump’s jokes, no third-party candidates, moderators they could trust and a mute button on microphones — would play to Biden’s style.
Biden flew to Europe twice and to the West Coast over a 14-day period before taking a few days to rest at his vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.
Biden was tired and dragged out by the end of the trip, according to several people who observed him during that period.
He and his aides headed to Camp David for focused preparation sessions on June 21, where they bombarded Biden with details and then followed up with mock debates for the better part of seven days.
At CNN’s studios in Atlanta, Biden stumbled over his words and lost his train of thought.
His manner of speaking, his appearance and his voice immediately caught the attention of journalists, who asked his aides for explanations.
Officials told reporters as the debate was underway some new information: Biden was sick with a cold, they said.
Biden’s hoarseness would improve as the debate progressed, but his disjointed answers caught voters, donors and Democratic officials by surprise.
One Democratic strategist called it a “disaster.”
Trump, 78, repeated a series of obvious and hackneyed falsehoods during the 90-minute debate, including claims that he had actually won the 2020 election.
Biden failed to refute them, leaving sentences and thoughts unfinished.
Trump criticized Biden for being inconsistent, saying: “I don’t really know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don’t think he knows what he said.”
“I know I’m not a young man, to state the obvious,” Biden said the day after the debate that he had performed poorly: “I almost fell asleep on stage,” he said on July 2.
Calls for Biden to resign are expected to begin in the hours following the debate.
Calls from Biden’s advisers to worried Democrats facing reelection campaigns and seeing their political futures flash before their eyes would not begin until days later.
Some lawmakers began to break ranks, starting with U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett on July 2, and then gaining momentum.
Angry donors told Biden aides they would need to see a change in the candidate’s performance.
Senior Democrats and Biden allies also began hinting at changes to the formula.
House Democrat Jim Clyburn, a kingmaker of sorts within the Democratic Party who was instrumental in Biden’s 2020 victory, said on July 2 that he would back Vice President Kamala Harris if Biden dropped out and floated the idea of a “mini-primary” if Biden stepped aside.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a longtime Biden ally, said it was legitimate to ask whether Biden’s performance in Atlanta was an “episode” or a condition.
He also suggested that Biden should reconsider his decision to stay in the race.
Biden would fail to silence the chorus of dissent.
In his first major interview after the debate on July 5, Biden told ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos that only the “Lord Almighty” could kick him out of the race.
More worrying to some Democrats, Biden said he might agree to stay in the race and lose to Trump. “As long as I gave it my all and did the best job I know I can do.”
No fewer than 36 Democratic U.S. lawmakers and one independent member of the Democratic caucus are expected to call for Biden to drop out of the race within 24 days of the debate.
Biden tried to move on. He gave interviews, held a press conference and delivered tough speeches during the election campaign and at the NATO summit of US allies.
But at times events caused more concern than reassurance.
At the NATO summit in the second week of July – between the 9th and 12th to be precise – Biden confused the names of his vice president Harris and his Republican rival Trump, as well as those of Ukrainian president Donald Trump. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and the Russian president Vladimir Putin, whose countries are at war with each other.
Polls showed Biden trailing other Democrats in many of the key states and districts Democrats need to win in November, though national polls continued to point to a tight race.
Biden was unfazed, continuing to believe he was the best candidate to take on Trump and that he could bounce back from this setback as he had so many times before, a view reinforced by a close circle of advisers.
Trump was shot while giving a speech in Pennsylvania.
The bullet grazed his ear, leaving his face bloodied, and photos of the former president raising his fist in defiance were widely circulated.
Republicans spoke of divine providence, rallying around their candidate, while Democrats worried that their own chances were doomed, seeing only a narrower path to any victory in November.
Days later, Biden contracted COVID-19 while campaigning in Nevada. As he recovered at his home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, he had time, alone and isolated, to decide whether and how to end his campaign.
