Pelosi and Schumer ‘pile pressure on Biden to quit’ as he drops out of campaign stop with Covid: Live

If you’re just joining us, the big news overnight is that US President Joe Biden‘s fight to continue his re-election campaign amid concerns over his mental fitness has suffered a major blow after he tested positive for Covid.

Biden had to suddenly abandon his campaign stops in Las Vegas on Wednesday as news came through of his diagnosis while he greeted customers at a Mexican restaurant in the Nevada city.

The president was said to be looking “slower and less energetic than the previous day” by reporters as he was held up in the diner before the result was revealed.

It meant his immediate campaign schedule had to be ripped up with him cancelling a speech at the UnidosUS Annual Conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday evening.

Here’s the latest from Mike Bedigan.

Jon Stewart returned to The Daily Show on Tuesday to spar once more with former Fox News anchor Bill O’Reilly, who made the surprising argument that Donald Trump is “haunted” by the legacy of January 6, without which he might have been able to pull much further ahead of Joe Biden in the polls.

Joe Sommerlad watched the reunion.

The assault weapon is part of a giveaway at a booth for the U.S. Concealed Carry Association, an advocacy organization that promotes gun ownership for safety purposes.

Ariana Baio has the story.

Joe Biden, who has tested positive for Covid-19, used his diagnosis to take a swing at his opponents.“I’m sick,” wrote the president.

But it was quickly followed by a post in a thread, which read, “of Elon Musk and his rich buddies trying to buy this election”.

He also used the attention garnered through his post to redirect social media users to his campaign’s fundraising efforts, as he shared a link to a donation site.

Mr Musk, an admirer of the Republican presidential nominee, took to X to support Trump after he survived an assassination attempt last weekend.“I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery,” Mr Musk wrote.

The young man was pacing around the edges of the Donald Trump campaign rally, shouldering a big backpack and peering into the lens of a rangefinder toward the rooftops behind the stage where the former president would stand.

His behavior was so odd, so unlike that of the other rallygoers, that local law enforcement took notice, radioed their concerns and snapped a photo. But then he vanished.

The image was circulated by officers stationed outside the security perimeter on that hot, sunny Saturday afternoon. But the man didn’t appear again until witnesses saw him climbing up the side of a squat manufacturing building that was within 135 meters (157 yards) from the stage.

Democrats worried about president Joe Biden’s ability to win this November are making a renewed push for him to reconsider his reelection bid, using mountains of data, frank conversations and now, his own time off the campaign trail after testing positive for Covid-19, to encourage a reassessment.

Mr Biden has insisted he is not backing down, adamant that he is the candidate who beat Republican Donald Trump before and will do it again this year. But publicly and privately, key Democrats are sending signals of concern, and some hope he will assess the trajectory of the race and his legacy during this few days’ pause.

Over the past week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries have spoken privately to the president, candidly laying out the views of Democrats on Capitol Hill, including their concerns.

Separately, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Representative Suzan DelBene of Washington, spoke with the president last week armed with fresh data. The campaign chief specifically aired the concerns of frontline Democrats who are seeking election to the House.

And on Wednesday, California Representative Adam Schiff, a close ally of Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, became the highest-profile House Democrat to call for Mr Biden to drop his reelection bid, saying that while the decision is the president’s alone to make, he believes it’s time to “pass the torch.”

President Joe Biden tested positive for Covid-19 while travelling on Wednesday in Las Vegas and is experiencing “mild symptoms” including “general malaise” from the infection, the White House said.

Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Mr Biden will fly to his home in Delaware, where he will “self-isolate and will continue to carry out all of his duties fully during that time.”

The news had first been shared by UnidosUS President and CEO Janet Murguïa, who told guests at the group’s convention in Las Vegas that president had sent his regrets and could not appear because he tested positive for the virus.

Dr Kevin O’Connor, the president’s physician, said in a note that Mr Biden, 81, “presented this afternoon with upper respiratory symptoms, to include rhinorhea (runny nose) and non-productive cough, with general malaise.”After the positive Covid-19 test, Mr Biden was prescribed the antiviral drug Paxlovid and has taken his first dose, Dr O’Connor said.

The president’s diagnosis comes amid intense scrutiny of his health and stamina after a disastrous debate with former president Donald Trump that sparked a flurry of concern among Democrats that Mr Biden is not up to the rigors of winning another presidential term.

Mr Biden gingerly boarded Air Force One and told reporters traveling with him, “I feel good.” The president was not wearing a mask as he walked onto Air Force One.

The Democratic senator had previously rejected calls for his resignation after he was placed at the center of a years-long scheme to wield his political influence to help the Egyptian government while sitting on a powerful foreign relations committee.

The senator has now reportedly told allies that he plans to resign, according to NBC News.

A sheriff in Butler County, Pennsylvania defended local police officers who confronted the shooter before he opened fire, crediting them with saving Donald Trump’s life.

After the assassination attempt against the former president, local law enforcement has been the subject of criticism, including from the Secret Service.

It emerged that Trump’s would-be assassin was able to start shooting even after having been briefly confronted by officers.

But Butler Township Manager Tom Knights defended local police.

Instead of kayakers and tour boats, the summertime scene on the Milwaukee River has taken on a solemn tone this week during the Republican National Convention: Around-the-clock patrol boats, some with heavily armed officers.

Security planners have had to contend with the winding waterways through Milwaukee near the Fiserv Center RNC convention site, along with securing downtown streets. Roughly half a dozen police departments, along with state and federal agencies, have boats patrolling the river 24-hours-a-day until the convention ends this week.

“They’re committed to working those long shifts, throughout the days and nights,” U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Joe Neff said. “They’ve been all on board for making sure public safety is priority.”