Welcome back to your weekly update on US politics, where North America bureau chief Jade Macmillan catches you up on the biggest developments in America as we hurtle towards election day in November.
On the eve of the United States' national holiday, Americans are getting ready to fire up barbecues and set off fireworks to mark Independence Day.
Inside the White House though, the mood is anything but celebratory.
The pressure on Joe Biden following his disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump continues to intensify, both publicly and behind the scenes.
Texas congressman Lloyd Doggett became the first Democrat in Congress to come forward and call on Biden to step aside as the party's candidate in this year's election.
A second, Raúl Grijalva, has since expressed a similar view.
Former House speaker Nancy Pelosi said it was "legitimate" to question whether his debate performance was an "episode" or a "condition".
And new polling suggests Biden has lost ground in the close race against his opponent.
With the president's campaign in damage control, his public schedule points to some of the efforts being made to turn things around.
He's sitting down with Democratic governors, some of whom are being touted as potential replacements for the candidacy, in what's been described as a "crisis meeting".
Campaign events have been scheduled in the coming days in the key swing states of Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.
And perhaps most critically, he'll do a rare TV interview with American network ABC, the bulk of which will go to air over the weekend.
The New York Times is reporting that Biden recognises the perilous spot he's in, telling an unnamed "key ally" that the next few days will be crucial in keeping his campaign alive.
A White House spokesman described the article as "absolutely false", and when press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked whether he was considering stepping aside, she responded "absolutely not".
The same White House press briefing included an extraordinary back and forth over what the president does outside the hours of 10am and 4pm, when he's reportedly most engaged, and on the question of if he takes afternoon naps.
"This is a president that wakes up every morning and puts the American people first," Jean-Pierre replied.
She was also quizzed on the White House's claims Biden had a cold and was jetlagged on the night of the debate, after the president told donors he "almost fell asleep on stage".
And she was pushed on whether a press conference planned at next week's NATO summit in Washington DC would be of the "big boy" variety — that is, with the president taking more than just a few questions.
Even if the president avoids any major missteps in the next few days, it won't necessarily put concerns within his party — or among voters — to rest.
And at a moment when speculation over his future continues to dominate headlines in the US, even after a hugely significant Supreme Court ruling, the upcoming public holiday mightn't be enough to make Americans tune out.
A king above the law? How the Supreme Court handed Trump a big win
If this past week was arguably the worst of Joe Biden's 2024 campaign, it might have been one of Donald Trump's best.
He claimed a major victory after the Supreme Court found former presidents were immune from criminal prosecution for "official acts" carried out while they were in office.
The ruling was in relation to Trump's challenge against the so-called January 6 case, in which he's accused of trying to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
And while the justices didn't rule specifically on the allegations against him, referring those decisions back to a lower court, they made clear that at least part of the case — involving Trump's discussions with the Justice Department — wouldn't hold.
The decision means the January 6 trial is almost certainly delayed until after November's election, an outcome Trump had long been pushing for.
His sentencing in the New York hush money case has also been pushed back from next week until mid-September, after his lawyers argued some of the evidence presented in court would be counted as "official acts".
But whatever the immediate benefits for the former president, the longer-term implications of the ruling could be far more significant.
The court split down ideological lines, with the three liberal justices (nominated by Democratic presidents) issuing a dissenting opinion warning the relationship between the commander-in-chief and the American people had "shifted irrevocably".
"Orders the Navy's Seal Team 6 to assassinate a political rival? Immune," Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote.
"Organises a military coup to hold onto power? Immune. Takes a bribe in exchange for a pardon? Immune. Immune, immune, immune.
"In every use of official power, the president is now a king above the law."
Biden also criticised the court's decision, arguing it meant there were "virtually no limits on what a president can do" and warning a re-elected Trump would be more emboldened.
Loading...The counter-argument is that if Trump is returned to office, the ruling would seemingly protect Biden from being prosecuted over official acts he took in the White House, too.
Biden remains defiant
The rumblings around Biden's position might feel somewhat familiar to Australians who've gone through their fair share of prime ministerial spills in Canberra.
The difference in the US system is that it's not a matter of "doing the numbers" and gathering enough support among disgruntled members of a parliamentary party to roll a leader.
Biden had already secured enough delegates to be officially confirmed as the nominee at next month's Democratic national convention, and if he refuses to withdraw from the race, it could be extremely difficult to force him out.
And the president has built a reputation over decades in the Senate, the vice-president's office and the White House as a man who's repeatedly pushed through major political and personal adversity.
Loading..."When you get knocked down, you get back up," he said at a post-debate rally, in comments that have since been snipped up into a campaign ad.
Some Democrats are reportedly worried that Biden could let his stubborn streak get in the way of a decision they believe would be in the best interests of their party.
"I'm running," a fundraising email from Biden's campaign read.
"I'm the Democratic Party's nominee. No-one is pushing me out. I'm not leaving, I'm in this race to the end, and WE are going to win this election."
Democratic congressman Jamie Raskin said the debate "shook a lot of people up" and that Biden had a "very heavy decision to make".
"He won the delegates, and so he's in a situation where he gets to make that decision," Raskin told CNN.
"But I do think that we don't have a lot of time for him to make that decision. And we, you know, wish him godspeed in his deliberations."
In case you missed it: RFK's new controversies
Amid all the focus on Biden and Trump this week, a new set of controversies involving independent candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr (RFK) may have gone less noticed.
The nephew of former president John F Kennedy is known for his eccentricities but hit back at a Vanity Fair profile claiming he'd texted a friend in 2010 with a photo that suggested he'd eaten a dog.
RFK Jr took to X to argue it was a goat, not a dog (a warning his post includes a photo of said carcass that might be confronting).
But when asked about an allegation in the article that he'd sexually assaulted a former family babysitter, he responded that he was "not a church boy".
"Vanity Fair is recycling 30-year-old stories, and I, you know, am not gonna comment on the details of any of them," he told the Breaking Points podcast.
RFK Jr is not in with a real chance to win the election, but he could influence the outcome if he takes enough votes away from either Biden or Trump in close states.
He claims he's been upfront with his supporters since he entered the contest.
"I said in my announcement speech that I have so many skeletons in my closet that if they could all vote, I could run for king of the world," he said.
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