Three Weeks Is Enough, Mr. President

The departure of President Biden from the 2024 is starting to look inevitable, writes Ben Mathis-Lilley in Slate. In his view, Biden should not delay much longer in exiting the race. Some wanted to force him out of the race immediately after his faltering debate performance, which his family feared might have left that night the "defining moment of his presidency." Instead, Biden was able to rebound with his NATO press conference, which shored up what he sees as "one of the signature achievements of his career"—a stronger alliance to ward off Vladimir Putin.

"Biden has been accorded space to preserve his sense of autonomy and consider how he wants to be remembered—a deference that one could argue he has more than earned, given his decades of service in the Democratic Party and historic victory over an incumbent (Donald) Trump during a national crisis four years ago," writes Mathis-Lilley. Democrats also needed the last three weeks to suss out their opinions and figure out a path forward. They seem to have done that, and it doesn't include Biden. Three weeks is long enough, because from here on out, "the timing only gets worse." Read the full column. (More President Biden stories.)