Biden aides accept ultimatum for president to demonstrate fitness for office or step aside: report

President Biden and his top officials say they have accepted an ultimatum from the Democratic Party that the president must demonstrate to the nation he is fit for office or face a concerted effort to have him bow out of the race.

Critics tell The Washington Post they are unnerved by the lack of urgency from within the Biden administration after his disastrous debate performance ignited calls from within his own party to step down.

One senior campaign adviser called Biden’s reticence “a deafening silence.”

“I think the onus is really on Biden right now to be very candid with all of us privately, not publicly, not that we’re going to tell reporters, but to be very candid with us privately about what happened, what is the larger issue? Can we get through this?” Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill., told The Post. "We do need more than emails of polling briefs from White House legislative affairs directors right now to assuage those concerns.”

Earlier Wednesday, the Biden campaign sent out an email to supporters clarifying that the president had no plans to back out of the race.