Democrat freak out over Biden’s reelection bid put on temporary pause in aftermath of Trump assassination attempt

For two weeks now, Democratic calls have been mounting to replace President Joe Biden as the 2024 presidential candidate amid concerns about his age and mental health.

But the assassination attempt on President Donald Trump has temporarily halted demands that Biden withdraw from the 2024 race.

In the days before a gunman attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, there was much debate in Washington over whether Joe Biden would remain the Democratic presidential nominee.

Joe Biden’s close friends and colleagues, such as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), have indicated — Pelosi openly on MSNBC and Schumer privately — that they are open to a new candidate at the top of the ticket.

Polls show Trump has been on the rise since the debate, and some bettors are favoring Vice President Kamala Harris as the nominee amid concerns about Biden’s mental and physical health.

But Democratic insiders say the coup to replace Biden has been shelved as the party responds to the very real attempted assassination of the former president.

“You just lose all your momentum,” a Biden ally said of the shooting NBC NewsThe effort to impeach Biden, they added, “I think is over.”

A veteran Democratic strategist said, “They had a really bad political day, and then we had this supernova event. Now it’s frozen.”

“If you’re a proponent of, ‘How do we tell the old man it’s time to go?’ — it’s really hard to have that conversation in public. This event is now blocking the sun.”

After the shooting on Saturday night, the Biden campaign announced it would suspend attack ads against Trump on TV and other platforms.

The president also called an emergency press conference to discuss the shooting.

Dressed in a blue sports jacket and without a tie, he addressed the crowd and condemned the violence in clear terms.

“There is no place in America for this kind of violence. It’s sick. It’s sick,” he said Saturday night.

“It’s one of the reasons we need to unite this country.”

Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump gestures as he is surrounded by U.S. Secret Service agents as he is helped off the stage during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, Saturday, July 13, 2024

Within the Democratic Party, operatives tried to shut down political discussion and oppose Trump and those calling for Biden’s resignation.

Internal files obtained by NBC News show the campaign responded quickly to the devastating assassination attempt that left the shooter and a bystander dead.

“Refrain from any comments on social media or in public,” Biden’s internal campaign said, and “cease all proactive campaign communications on all platforms and under all circumstances until we know more.”

Another Biden ally noted that it would be unbecoming of a Democrat to attack an opponent who recently escaped an assassination attempt.

“It’s likely that the effort to oust Biden is over. He’s not going to step aside voluntarily at this point,” the second ally said. “Biden has shown he’s going to fight.”

This caution is justified, as the deadly attacks have shocking consequences.

Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, opened fire on former President Donald Trump with an AR-style rifle from a rooftop 450 feet from his campaign rally stage at 6:15 p.m.

Bullets from his gun killed retired Buffalo Township fire chief Corey Comperatore, who died a hero protecting his family.

A bullet grazed the former president’s ear, causing him to crouch down and eventually be covered by a group of Secret Service personnel.

Since then, lawmakers have called for investigations into the Secret Service and its leaders.

They have also begun drafting a bill to improve Secret Service protections for candidates like Trump, Biden and even Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

The president addresses his supporters moments before the shooting

Former Navy SEAL Rep. Ryan Zinke, Republican of Montana, who has experience setting perimeters in war zones, said the fact that the shooter was able to reach a “nearby rooftop” to aim at Trump was an “absolute failure of security.”

And House Speaker James Comer (R-Kentucky) told DailyMail.com in a statement that he plans to hold a hearing with Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to determine the cause of the errors.

The House Committee on Homeland Security also said in a statement that it wants to hold a hearing with the Secret Service.