After Biden Presser, Dems Are Stuck in 'Special Layer of Hell'

President Biden's "do or die" moment, the press conference in which he had to convince the world he's able to lead the US for four more years, has come and gone. So what's the verdict? It's a mixed bag, with praise for Biden's foreign policy acumen and often-nuanced answers to reporters' questions at the conclusion of the NATO summit in DC, but a still-nervous acknowledgment that there were some stumbles. There's also a still "jittery" Democrat contingent that isn't sure Biden's the one for the job, per Politico, which says Biden did "some damage control" on that front, "but not enough." More on the presser's aftermath:

• Political purgatory: "Democrats are trapped in a limbo that is really a special layer of hell," Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Will Bunch noted on X. "Biden giving detailed, smart policy answers but the nattering nabobs will obsess on two very mundane 'gaffes.' He's still losing the swing states but not so badly to force him out. Makes me wanna holler."
• Further defections: As the news conference came to a close, more Democratic lawmakers said publicly that Biden should leave the race. "Today I ask President Biden to withdraw from the presidential campaign," California Rep. Scott Peters said in a statement, per Politico. "The stakes are high, and we are on a losing course." Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes and Illinois Rep. Eric Sorensen made similar remarks.
• And even more? Meanwhile, "well-placed" Democratic sources tell CBS News that they expect "dozens" of Dem lawmakers to ask the same of Biden over the next 48 hours, with some of those statements already reportedly written. One of the sources says they think the next few days will be "brutal," and that "it may become untenable by sometime next week for the president to continue in the race," as CBS puts it. As of Friday morning, one Democratic senator and 16 House Democrats had called for Biden to step aside, per the AP.

• Defenders: Others touted Biden's "heartening" performance at the news conference, per the New York Times. "Honestly, could the other guy have done any of that?" Democratic Sen. Chris Coons said afterward. "Anyone concerned about his ability to lead and govern should be reassured." "Even policy points that I might disagree with were robust! Substance matters," wrote Patrick Gaspard, head of liberal think tank Center for American Progress, on X.
• Trump/Biden weigh in: The former president poked fun of one of Biden's flubs—in which Biden mistakenly referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as "Vice President Trump"—on Truth Social. "Great job, Joe!" Trump wrote sarcastically in a post showing the clip. Biden responded to Trump's post on X, retweeting the former president's post and noting, "By the way: Yes, I know the difference [between Harris and Trump]. One's a prosecutor, and the other's a felon."
• Fact-check: CNN offers one for the president's remarks during the presser.
• What's next for Biden? The president heads to Detroit on Friday, where he'll continue what the AP calls a "blue wall sprint" to make his case in crucial battleground states like Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania—the three states that right now are offering the "clearest pathway" to victory for Biden should he stay in the race.

(More President Biden stories.)