The disorganisation of the Democratic rebels against Joe Biden

Many baby-boom Democrats trace their political roots to the rebellious 1960s. Young progressives led by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and “the Squad” embed protest in their politics. Yet amid panic and crisis over the teetering re-election campaign of Joe Biden, the party has apparently lost its nerve to act up. On July 12th Democrats entered their third week since the president’s shockingly impaired debate performance elicited widespread calls for him to yield to a younger candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November. In private, many elected Democrats still say Mr Biden should stand aside. And yet in public, among office-holders, the rebellion looks anaemic.

True, the number of congressional Democrats openly calling for Mr Biden to withdraw has been growing day by day. Yet the pace is glacial, given the short time remaining until the president is formally renominated as the party’s standard-bearer. By July 12th the ranks of declared dissenters numbered 19 in the House—just under a tenth of Democratic membership—and they included but a single senator, Peter Welch, a first-termer from Vermont.