Biden defiant, but critics are circling

WASHINGTON, United States — Joe Biden's presidential reelection bid hung in the balance Saturday, after his latest efforts to put a disastrous debate showing behind him failed to silence voices urging him to quit the White House race.

Murmurs of dissent within his own Democratic Party have –- in the case of five individual House representatives -- morphed into direct calls for him to drop out. And a number of key donors have threatened to cut off funding if Biden insists on staying the course.

"I do not believe that the President can effectively campaign and win against Donald Trump," Angie Craig, the latest House Democrat to break ranks, said Saturday.

The House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, has scheduled a virtual meeting of senior Democrat representatives for Sunday to discuss the best way forward, and Democrat Senator Mark Warner is reportedly working to convene a similar forum in the upper chamber.

In what had been billed as a make-or-break TV interview on Friday, Biden's strategy was to flatly deny the falling poll numbers and concerns over his mental and physical fitness triggered by his dismal performance against rival Donald Trump.

He blamed a severe cold for the debate debacle and insisted it was just a "bad night" rather than evidence of increasing frailty and cognitive decline.

And the 81-year-old was adamant that he would not be pressured to end his campaign.

"If the Lord Almighty came down and said, 'Joe, get out of the race,' I'd get out of the race," he said. "But the Lord Almighty is not coming down."

Calls for less divine intervention do, however, appear to be strengthening.

Biden's campaign team is pushing ahead regardless, with two events planned in Pennsylvania on Sunday and visits to other battleground states later in the month.

At a rally in Wisconsin before Friday's interview, Biden had delivered a forceful, energetic stump speech, unequivocally declaring, "I'm staying in the race. I'll beat Donald Trump."

Then came the sit-down with the ABC network that appeared unlikely to soothe the concerns of critics who say that -- away from a teleprompter -- Biden can struggle to communicate.

Some of his answers were tentative, meandering and