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Joe Biden has lost crucial support in the form of Hollywood star – and Democratic donor – Rob Reiner, who has urged him to step down from his presidential re-election bid.
On Sunday (7 July), the director of films including Stand by Me, This is Spinal Tap and When Harry Met Sally shared his unexpected and candid view on the party leader, whose capability has been thrown into question in recent months.
Biden is taking on Donald Trump in the 2024 US election and, despite multiple calls from party supporters, including Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof and Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, to withdraw from the race, he has held firm in his belief he is the person to keep Trump from returning to office.
However, 77-year-old Wolf of Wall Street actor Reiner, who has been a loyal Biden supporter until now, is unconvinced. The filmmaker wrote on social media that he believes Biden might be making a Trump victory inevitable.
Reiner hosted a fundraising event for vice president Kamala Harris just days after Biden’s rambling during a CNN debate with Trump led to widespread concern. He called on the president to “stop f***ing around” in a surprise statement on X/Twitter.
Reiner wrote: “If the Convicted Felon wins, we lose our Democracy. Joe Biden has effectively served US with honour, decency, and dignity. It’s time for Joe Biden to step down.”
Biden has brushed off concern over his debate performance, attributing the blame to exhaustion and telling Democrats he is “in it to win it”.
Reports claim that Harris acknowledged at Reiner’s fundraiser that the debate was not Biden’s “finest hour”, but pointed out that, regardless of peoples’ stance on the president, Trump remains “a threat to our democracy”.
In June, late night host John Oliver explained why a second presidential term for Trump would be “far, far worse” than his first.
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As evidence, the Last Week Tonight presenter highlighted Project 2025, which is a blueprint for Trump’s presidency spearheaded by the Heritage Foundation and Trump’s former aides and allies.
The movement is essentially a wishlist for his administration with plans to expand his executive authority and replace civil servants with ideologically aligned appointees.
As reported by The Independent, it would also give Trump unprecedented executive authority over federal agencies and open the door for Trump loyalists to weaponise the government against his rivals.
Oliver described the blueprint as “a conservative LinkedIn”, stating: “It’s essentially an open audition for people who might want a new job because they lost their old one on January 6 for some reason” – in reference to the attack on the Capitol building conducted by Trump supporters in 2021.
