THE PRESIDENT was tanned, rested and largely coherent during a high-pressure prime-time interview with ABC News on July 5th. Joe Biden expressed confidence, bordering on arrogance, about his presidency and ability to beat Donald Trump in November. And he made clear that he had no plans to abandon his re-election bid. Had the interview gone badly, Mr Biden would surely be stepping aside next week. That now looks less likely.

Tieless and at times visibly impatient, the 81-year-old president refused to countenance the possibility that his presence at the top of the ticket had become a liability for down-ballot Democrats, as polls suggest. “Look, I mean, if the Lord almighty came down and said, ‘Joe, get out of the race,’ then I’d get out of the race,” Mr Biden said. “But the Lord almighty’s not coming down. I mean, these hypotheticals.”