Axios

Some top Democratic donors are waiting on the first batch of polls from major media organizations before deciding whether to press for Biden's removal as the party's presidential nominee, Axios has learned.

• 🔥 For now, fundraisers are holding their fire. But their anxiety is quietly raging after Biden's bad showing in his debate against former President Trump.
• 📆 That makes the next two weeks as crucial to Biden's survival as the initial 24 hours after the debate, when Biden trotted out supportive statements from former Presidents Obama and Clinton and held an energetic rally in North Carolina.

📱 In private, donors frantically are texting one another, eager for any information on just how disastrous the night was. But so far they aren't calling for the party to ditch Biden.

The Supreme Court tomorrow is expected to issue its much-anticipated decision on whether Trump has legal immunity for his actions as president.

• Trump has asserted that former presidents cannot be prosecuted, even after leaving office, for actions they took while in office.
• ⚡️ A decision by the court granting full or partial immunity to Trump would affect the charges against him in the federal cases involving his effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election and his handling of classified documents.

When the justices heard the case in April, it appeared that some conservative justices might be open to at least some presidential immunity.

Some top Democratic donors are waiting on the first batch of polls from major media organizations before deciding whether to press for President Biden's removal as the party's presidential nominee, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: For now, fundraisers are holding their fire. But their anxiety is quietly raging after Biden's bad showing in his debate against former President Trump.

Democrats in competitive congressional races are begining to distance themselves from President Biden after the president's halting debate performance.

Why it matters: It had been a careful balancing act for many Democrats up until now, but swing district lawmakers and candidates are feeling an increased sense of urgency to try to compartmentalize their races.

Close allies and surrogates of President Joe Biden took to the airwaves Sunday to taper concerns about the commander-in-chief's mental acuity and stamina following Thursday's rocky debate.

Why it matters: Biden's stumbling performance triggered a tsunami of concern among Democrats and prompted discussions about who could emerge as the party's candidate should the president step aside before November.

Joe Biden's close aides have carefully shielded him from people inside and outside the White House since the beginning of his presidency.

Why it matters: The intermittent access has resulted in many current and former White House aides being shocked at the 81-year-old president's limitations at the debate Thursday night.

Ex-Trump adviser Steve Bannon said he has "no regrets" about defying a congressional subpoena, characterizing himself as a "political prisoner."

Why it matters: Bannon must report to prison by July 1 to serve a four-month sentence after the Supreme Court rejected his request to delay his looming prison sentence Friday.

President Biden's struggles got most of the headlines, but he did land a few jabs on former President Trump in a debate that was long on insults and short on cogent policy discussions. A review of some of Thursday night's most memorable zingers:

Trump: "I don't know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don't think he knows what he said either."

It's not just Joe Biden's age. It's not just his debate debacle, which made the president look slow, old, foggy. It's what's next that truly worries even Biden's biggest supporters, Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei write in a Behind the Curtain column.

• These Democrats fear that if three years as president took this much of a toll, Biden could look, act, sound and feel a lot worse at 86, after five more years. And Democrats would be devastated if Donald Trump won because voters concluded Biden's time has passed.

Democrats tell us privately that there's a perceptible increase in the number of times today, versus three years ago, where the signs of old age show. Hence their concern that this will only get worse, Mike and Jim write.

• Yes, Trump is almost as old (78 vs. Biden's 81) — and often says weird, confusing, just plain wrong things in public settings.
• But polls show age is less of an issue for him, partly because his voters love the hyperbole and histrionics.

The other side: When asked for comment, the White House and the Biden campaign each offered an official to talk on the record about how the president's debate performance doesn't tell the full story.

Joe Biden's close aides have carefully shielded him from people inside and outside the White House since the beginning of his presidency, Axios' Alex Thompson reports.

• Why it matters: The intermittent access has resulted in many current and former White House aides being shocked at the 81-year-old president's limitations at Thursday night's debate.

📷 "It's time for Joe to go." That's what Chandler West, the White House's deputy director of photography from January 2021 to May 2022, wrote in an Instagram story after the debate.

Splurging on vacations and dining out is taking a toll on young adults, with a notable share turning to aging parents to bail them out, Courtenay Brown and Margaret Talev write from a new Axios Vibes survey by The Harris Poll.

• Why it matters: "Retail therapy" and "fear of missing out" push many young people to blow their budgets with discretionary expenses.

📊 By the numbers: One-third of millennials, and over 60% of Gen Z consumers, say they rely on their parents for at least some financial support.

🔎 The intrigue: Boomers and Gen Xers who feel financially squeezed are more likely to blame higher prices of basic goods. Younger consumers more often blame their own choices.

Little Donna's in Baltimore — one of the entries on a New York Times guide to "22 of the Best Pizza Places in the United States" — offers pies with soft-shell crabs on top:

• "They're pan-fried, quartered and then scattered atop a cooked white pizza, where their buttery juices settle into the cheese."
• 🌶️ Order at Little Donna's like Megan & Andrew: sausage and banana-pepper pizza, then perogies.

The list includes Berkeley, Charlotte, Chicago, D.C., Juneau, L.A., Minneapolis, Nashville, New Orleans, Philly, Alabama, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont and more.

• See all 22 (gift link — no paywall).

It's not just Joe Biden's age. It's not just his debate debacle, which made the president look slow, old, foggy. It's what's next that truly worries even Biden's biggest supporters.

• They fear that if three years as president took this much of a toll, Biden could look, act, sound and feel much worse at 86, after five more years. And Democrats would be devastated if Donald Trump won because voters concluded Biden's time has passed.

Why it matters: Top Democrats worry Biden's situation hits too close to home for too many to ignore. Most people have watched a loved one decline — at first slowly, then dramatically — as they hit their mid-80s. These Democrats fear the party, not just Biden, would pay for ignoring this.