There he goes (please)

And not a moment too soon.

The talk among high-level Democratic strategists and donors has now turned to who is best positioned to serve has Harris’s running mate, and the short list has boiled down to Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have communicated to senior party leaders that they would not be interested.

[...]

Alums from former President Obama’s 2008 and 2012 winning presidential campaigns are prepared to help Harris get her own presidential campaign operation up and running if Biden agrees to step aside, according to a source familiar with the transition plan.

[...]

Congressional leaders are “lukewarm” on Harris as the nominee but recognize that her favorable rating is higher than Biden’s and believe the president can help boost her numbers by campaigning for her.

  The Hill

They better warm up and hit it hard.

White House senior deputy press secretary Andrew Bates denied that Biden is contemplating dropping out of the race.

“False,” he said in a one-word statement issued after The Hill reported that Biden is expected to make a decision about his political future in the next few days.

Strange they'd send out the deputy press secretary to say that.

“A lot of stuff is going on in Delaware today,” the source added. “There will be some sort of strong statement coming out after the other guy goes on stage tonight,” referring to Trump’s acceptance of the GOP nomination for president at the convention in Milwaukee Thursday evening.

Biden’s campaign team has led supporters to believe that the president will reaffirm his commitment to stay in the race through Election Day, but some of them suspect he could announce a decision to end his campaign.

“I don’t know what the message that will end up being,” the strategist added. “There’s lots of time between now and then.”

No. No, there's not. That's just a few hours.

One Biden ally said the president remains defensive, even defiant, about his political future, but those around him are seeing the writing on the wall.

[...]

For starters, the latest round of polls continue to spell trouble for Biden. “It keeps getting worse,” said one strategist close to the campaign. “There has been no proof to the contrary. And morale is like I’ve never seen. It’s bad. It’s like everyone can sense what’s coming.”

“At this point, it’s untenable,” one surrogate to the campaign said. “There’s no putting the genie back in the bottle.”

And while small donors have continued to trickle in, major fundraising is in the hole, sources said, as major donors continue to withhold money.

“There are significant cracks and they are beyond repair,” said one major Democratic donor, who added that fundraising is “bleak” because “Biden’s candidacy is clearly on the brink of collapse and the campaign knows it.”

Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), who is locked in a tight reelection bid, on Thursday became the second Senate Democrat to call for President Biden to withdraw from the presidential race.

“Montanans have put their trust in me to do what is right, and it is a responsibility I take seriously. I have worked with President Biden when it has made Montana stronger, and I’ve never been afraid to stand up to him when he is wrong,” Tester said in a statement.

  The Hill

Expect a spate of similar public pronouncements.

What a shame, but Joe did this to himself. (With the help of his family and campaign staff, who have vested interests in him staying in office.)

The article says some Biden allies are grousing that Obama is behind this, and try to prove it by the fact that some Obama staffers are offering to help run Kamala's campaign.  If so, I hope they make their slogan "Yes She Can!"