Hey there from CNN, I'm Chris Debeau with the five things you need to know for

Thursday July 18th. President Joe Biden is self isolating after testing

positive for COVID-19, but he can't distance himself from the pressure

to step down from the 2024 race. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi privately

told the president that polling shows he can't beat former president Donald Trump and he

could also destroy Democrats chances of winning the house if he stays in the race.

One source said Biden got defensive on the call but a senior Democratic advisor has told

CNN Biden is being receptive to conversations about whether he should

step aside. CNN obtained a Wednesday polling memo from Blue Rose

research which is distributed daily to officials in the Democratic Party.

The memo said defending Biden's fitness for office is untenable for down-ballot Democrats,

and voters could see defense of the president as dishonest.

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez is in Delaware,

where Biden is self isolating with mild symptoms.

Two things can be happening at once here,

and they certainly are.

That includes the president being receptive to

those conversations having those private discussions but simultaneously

also being quite defensive. During the NATO summit during his his solo news conference, he said that he had not yet seen polling

that shows that he can't defeat Donald Trump.

I mean, he left the door open that if he did, he could be receptive.

So certainly, you can see that there are so many questions

...