Biden 'absolutely not' considering quitting

The White House has said Joe Biden is "absolutely not" considering a withdrawal of his presidential candidacy, amid a furious effort by his campaign to shore up his support, including a key meeting with Democratic governors scheduled for last night and a TV interview tomorrow.

- Robert Tait ,Joanna Walters & Chris Michae

The president joined his vice-president, Kamala Harris, on a campaign call, telling staff that he would "keep fighting", according to Reuters.

At a press briefing yesterday, the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, denied Biden was considering stepping away from being the presumptive nominee for reelection to the White House in this November's election.

"Absolutely not," she said. Asked if there was anything that would change his mind, she said she could not speak to that but he had been "very clear" that he was busy doing his job and would continue doing that. The White House also denied reports by Bloomberg that dozens of Democrats were considering signing a letter calling for Biden's withdrawal.

Earlier yesterday, an ally of Biden told the New York Times that the president remained fully committed to his re-election effort, but he knew his forthcoming public appearances would have to be successful in order for his candidacy to remain viable.

"He knows if he has two more events like that, we're in a different place," the source said, referring to Biden's disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump last week.

The White House immediately pushed back. The senior deputy press secretary and deputy assistant to the president Andrew Bates said: "That claim is absolutely false. If the New York Times had provided us with more than seven minutes to comment we would have told them so." An interview is scheduled for tomorrow with George Stephanopoulos of ABC News, and the Biden campaign has scheduled stops in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Cracks in support among party leaders for Biden's campaign continued to widen before his meeting with Democratic governors yesterday.