It would have come as no surprise to political observers a few months ago to know that by the time the summer nominating conventions opened, one of the political parties would be deeply fractured over its standard-bearer and the other would appear unified behind its candidate.
What might have been surprising was which party would fit which role.
Even as Republicans meeting in Milwaukee put on a show of unity for former President Donald J. Trump, Democrats are still stewing over President Biden’s insistence on staying in the race and in some cases even plotting how to press him to step aside. The assassination attempt against Mr. Trump last weekend diverted attention from the Democratic discord but did not solve the problem.
Indeed, many Democrats are just as convinced as ever that Mr. Biden cannot beat Mr. Trump and should step aside in favor of a candidate who might have a better chance. The issue was brought back to the surface on Wednesday when Representative Adam B. Schiff, who is poised to win a Senate seat in deeply blue California this fall, called on Mr. Biden to drop out. Mr. Schiff’s decision was especially noteworthy because he is a close ally of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Mr. Biden, who tested positive for Covid on Wednesday, clearly resents the internal dissent, increasingly snapping at anyone he perceives as challenging him. People close to his circle said he appeared to be in denial, digging in and refusing to listen. While most of the political world is focused on the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and Mr. Trump’s selection of Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio as his running mate, the public fight about the president could reach the boiling point again as early as Friday after the G.O.P. decamps.
The Republican unity parade, of course, is partly smoke and mirrors, a television spectacle meant to shroud the party’s own deep divisions over Mr. Trump, a convicted felon who tried to overturn an election he lost in order to hold onto power. While Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis and other vanquished primary rivals dutifully took turns paying homage, those who are not going along with his triumph have simply vanished from view.