News: some Democratic donors and officials are reaching out to Sen. Joe Manchin to consider standing for the...

[Metaphorical]

84. I think they miscalculated, badly

Here's my guess - they wanted the democratic party in disarray, so that they could, best case, put someone in of their own choosing, and at a minimum have Biden come out of the convention torn by strife and discord, limping to defeat against Trump. They misread the concern of the politicians about Biden and thought it had more to do with unhappiness about his policies rather than his health, and they tried to take advantage of it. Biden looked at what was becoming an increasingly untenable situation, and tipped the board over. Harris is now getting pledges of support from the state delegates and state committee chairs, and is quickly capitalizing on the growing anger against big money donors to consolidate her base.

Harris is going into the convention as the heir apparent, with Biden's blessing, having nullified many of the attacks being thrown against Biden. The problem with coups is that they often can turn on unexpected developments. One more thing to keep in mind - Biden wasn't force out- he walked. Big difference. He set the stage for his own exit on a high note, energized the party's base, managed to get his protege into a position to capitalize, and secured his reputation in history. This was not supposed to happen.