Rep. Jamie Raskin acknowledged that Democrats are having "very honest, and serious and rigorous conversations" about Biden's political future after his poor debate performance. Some top Democrats have publicly defended Biden, calling his debate a "bad" performance but not disqualifying. Several unnamed lawmakers expressed to NBC News their belief that it is time to consider replacing Biden as the Democratic nominee, suggesting the possibility of an open convention. Biden's senior adviser Anita Dunn said Biden has not discussed dropping out with aides.