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© Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP, Al Drago, Jemal Countess, and Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
President Biden is struggling to contain mounting dissent from Democratic members of Congress that has culminated in a call for him to withdraw as the party's nominee.

Why it matters: Biden's campaign has attempted to quash concerns about the president's political strength and fitness for office by casting doubters as overwrought, but that strategy now appears to be backfiring.
  • "Some of us don't want to wake up on Nov. 6 kicking ourselves because we had all of these red flags and warnings and we couldn't muster the courage to do something about it," said one House Democrat.
Driving the news: Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) on Tuesday became the first sitting Democratic member of Congress to call for Biden to step down, as did former Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) and Colorado congressional candidate Adam Frisch.
  • Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said in a local TV news interview on Monday that the Biden campaign should be "candid with us about his condition," while Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) said on CNN the campaign "needs to listen to us."
  • Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), in an interview with Semafor, chastised the campaign for its "dismissive attitude," alluding to a fundraising email last week that dismissed those with concerns as "bedwetters."
  • Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said on MSNBC that it was "legitimate" to ask of both Biden and Trump: "Is this an episode or a condition?'"
What they're saying: "There is a lot of apprehension. That's an understatement, [but] there's no other way to describe it," Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) told Axios.
  • Quigley said public worries are surfacing this week because it "took some time to process" the fallout from Biden's poor showing in Thursday's debate, and members are "starting to digest how the public is being influenced by this."
  • Pointing to Project 2025 and the Supreme Court's immunity decision, Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) said Democrats "must be laser-focused on winning, not hand wringing, or sentimentality, or insulting each other as 'bedwetters,' or anything else."
Between the lines: The "bedwetters" line has lawmakers particularly up in arms, with one House Democrat telling Axios indignantly, "Consider me a 'bedwetter.' This is not getting better."
  • Another House Democrat said members "understand they're defending their candidate" but "it's insulting to say people are 'bedwetters' after last Thursday."
  • "This is real! To ignore what the public obviously feels is ridiculous ... what's hard to burn away is the president being walked off the stage by his wife down the stairs," the lawmaker added.
What to watch: Several House Democrats told Axios they think Biden should meet with the Democratic Caucus to address lawmakers' concerns.
  • "Explain what happened and explain how it won't happen again. The question is can he effectively prosecute the case against Trump," said Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio), adding that a caucus meeting is "always a good idea."
  • Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) said a meeting with the caucus would be an "important thing" for Biden to do and suggested the president also sit down with a TV news anchor with a "high degree of respect" from the public, such as CNN's Chris Wallace.
The other side: Reached for comment on this story, the Biden campaign referred to a past statement from spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg that Biden "is absolutely not dropping out."
  • The campaign also pointed to top Democrats such as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) voicing continued support for Biden.
  • White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at a briefing on Tuesday, "We understand the concerns. We get it. The president did not have a great night ... [but] he knows how to do the job."
Reality check: Few lawmakers expect Biden to withdraw, so the approach instead has been to try to shape the Biden campaign's response to the fallout.
  • "I think that Joe Biden is the nominee. He's the nominee apparent, unless he withdraws, and he's not going to withdraw from what I can see," said Cohen.
  • Another House Democrat said lawmakers are "frustrated and angry" with Biden, but a "big problem is that no one really likes the alternative of running Kamala."