POLITICO

Joe Biden insists he’s staying in the race. But some notable Dems still aren’t sure – including lawmakers who returned to the Hill this week and went straight into multiple closed-door debates about the president’s fitness for office. So who could replace Biden as the Dem nominee if he steps down? Tap through for a glimpse at who might actually have a (longshot) chance at taking over, or head to the link below for the full breakdown of the top 7 potential alternates that Democrats keep talking about (and their respective strengths and weaknesses). 📷 AP, Getty Images https://lnkd.in/eGDxVw_m

Defense officials from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania made a forceful case for the #NATO alliance that was conspicuously Trump-friendly, lacing their remarks with tough love for countries that aren’t spending heavily on defense and muting any direct critique of Donald Trump’s quasi-isolationist instincts.

Democrats in the U.S. were quick to cheer last weekend’s shocking French election results, when the left dealt a surprise blow to the far-right party of Marine Le Pen. “France rejected extremism,” Biden said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Monday. “Democrats will reject it here as well.” But experts say it’s not quite the same. France essentially offers voters a do-over with its required two-rounds of voting, while Americans only get one shot. Link below for the full breakdown of the differences and similarities between what just happened in France & what’s going on in U.S. politics in last night’s West Wing Playbook newsletter.  https://lnkd.in/eVT3n4rc

NATO leaders and diplomats are descending on muggy Washington D.C. this week to discuss topics like arming Ukraine, ramping up weapon production, deterring Russia and confronting China. But the 32 member states are also looking to push their own agendas amid some particularly volatile changes: the power-shifting French elections; a new government and leadership in Britain, the potential return of a former President Donald Trump and questions swirling around President Joe Biden’s political future. Tap through for a peek at our guide on who to watch and what to expect this week as the summit begins on Tuesday (and runs through Thursday). Link below for a closer look + the full list. https://lnkd.in/efuexNAK

A defiant President Joe Biden insisted to his donors today that he’s “done talking about the debate” and implored the party to ignore further distractions and direct its attention back to defeating Donald Trump. “We need to move forward. Look, we have roughly 40 days til the convention, 120 days til the election. We can’t waste any more time being distracted,” Biden said in a private call to hundreds of top Democratic donors and bundlers, according to a recording we obtained. Democrats, he said, need to be directing their anger at Trump, who he said has “gotten away with doing nothing for the last 10 days.” But there’s still lingering concern and frustration within the high-dollar community about Biden’s ability to win in November. Link below for the full exclusive. 📷 Susan Walsh/AP https://lnkd.in/e72uBjqi

President Biden is fighting for his political life this week as lawmakers return to the Hill from their July Fourth recess and head straight into in-person discussions about his electability. And he’s counting on a reliable playbook: support from African American Democrats and union allies. It’s a familiar strategy for Biden. He’s portraying the people calling for him to step down as mostly elite white liberals who are out of step with the more diverse and working-class grassroots of the party, writes our senior political columnist Jonathan Martin. And it’s his only path to survival now. Read the story: https://lnkd.in/eppVbr-x

A new book explores the history of presidents who abused their constitutional power and the citizen movements that stopped them. There’s a lesson in this for Trump if he wins reelection.

“We’re not sure that, even if he wins, he can survive four years more,” said one official from a European NATO country. https://politi.co/3RYn57f

Some Democrats interpreted this as threatening and “chilling.” The latest comments from the leader spearheading Project 2025 – a sweeping roadmap for dismantling aspects of the federal government if Trump wins reelection: https://politi.co/3zrjuYX

🚨BREAKING: Labour has obliterated the Tories with a historic UK election win according to the official exit poll. Follow for updates: https://trib.al/ZEbeHwJ