Mulvaney: We need more presidential debates, not fewer

Even if you’re a Republican, there will come a time when you’ll have to sympathize with President Biden’s campaign. They have the unenviable task of trying to manage a candidate who, at his best, may claim to have walked on the moon at any time. At worst, you might say you think it’s green cheese.

Teams need to understand that they are looking forward to the era of coronavirus, when it was perfectly possible to run a national campaign in a nearly 100 percent controlled environment. There are no press gatherings, no impromptu stops at the local deli, and fortunately very few off-the-cuff remarks.

But of course, 2024 is not 2020, and the Biden team can’t simply park reps in the Rose Garden and have them do choreographed exchanges with MSNBC and NPR. So they look for the next best thing, a softball interview with a Biden supporter or Trump hater, hoping their man won’t make too much news.

Unfortunately for them, gaffe masterminds can wreak havoc in even the most controlled media environments. The same thing happened on Howard Stern’s radio show last week.

Mr. Stern, a once-edgy man, spent nearly an hour praising Mr. Biden on tough topics such as Mr. Biden’s elementary school days. An illustrious career as a lifeguardand his wife Jill.Biden then Tweeted that he would debate Trump, and said he was “happy” to actually do it, but didn’t know when it would happen..

The breathy voices of the Biden team could almost be heard from offstage, but they were soon flooded with the sound of phone taps to begin damage control.

This is because the Democratic Party’s argument in the interview was that Biden’s desire to participate in the debate “depended on (Donald Trump’s) actions.” This is clearly code for “no debate,” as it is inconceivable that anyone in the Biden world thinks that President Trump’s actions will “earn” the right to debate.

The Biden campaign’s no-debate policy makes perfect sense from a self-interest perspective. The Biden team is concerned about his ability to participate in such a format. And the negatives of having him on stage dramatically outweigh the positives.

Yes, Republicans have said that before, especially regarding the State of the Union address in March. And yes, give credit where credit is due. Biden far exceeded expectations and gave what can only be described as a good speech. But as one Democratic consultant pointed out this week, any small jolt Biden got from that speech has already worn out.

But more importantly, the State of the Union is not a debate. Despite the now inevitable attempts of high-profile individuals to score social media hits with pointless interruptions, the State of the Union is one of the most controlled environments in which a president performs. .

Debate is completely different and is an impromptu affair that requires participants to be at their sharpest. Sure, they do extensive preparation, but there are no scripts, no notes, and no teleprompters. All candidates have won debates in very real ways.

Joe Biden can literally say anything under those circumstances. Democrats know this and are trembling.

The Biden team has been laying the groundwork in recent months to avoid a debate. For example, based on the fact that he refused to debate in the Republican primary, he pointed out that Trump was the one who actually arranged for the debate to be omitted. They questioned why Biden should debate if Trump didn’t.

Biden put all that aside last week.

The Trump team is now calling for debate anytime, anywhere. All such political hyperbole aside, that would be the best policy.

Conventional wisdom may be that there isn’t much need for much debate this election cycle, given that voters are already familiar with both candidates. But debates are about more than just getting to know the candidates. The world is very different from the last time Trump and Biden faced off.

Yes, the media regularly focuses on inflation, immigration, Israel, Ukraine, and abortion. But neither candidate is ever really pressed on those issues, now that most “news” looks a lot like campaign surrogates for either candidate. And while many voters may have made up their minds about their preferred candidate, the election is expected to be so close that even the small number of people who have not yet decided on their favorite candidate will , could determine the direction of the country.

We need more presidential debates, not fewer. And while “anytime, anywhere, anywhere” is probably too much, it seems like more than one or two things are being asked for. Unfortunately, that’s not likely to happen.

Unless, of course, Biden does another unscripted interview.

mick mulvaney He is a former member of the South Carolina House of Representatives and a NewsNation contributor. Under President Donald Trump, he served as Director of the Office of Management and Budget, Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and White House Chief of Staff.