On Tuesday, the 77-year-old, 15-term congressman Lloyd Doggett became the first member to articulate publicly what so many of his Democratic colleagues have been saying privately: It’s time for Joe Biden to “make the painful and difficult decision to withdraw” from the presidential race. That same afternoon, Speaker emerita Nancy Pelosi opened the door to the possibility, acknowledging that “it’s a legitimate question to say: Is this an episode, or a condition?” Rep. Jim Clyburn, another steadfast ally, said he would support Vice President Kamala Harris at the top of the ticket, were Biden to step aside—a provocative hypothetical that would have once bordered on heresy.