According to multiple reports, President Biden and former President Trump have taken very different approaches to Thursday’s presidential debate, with the former hoping to “spice up” the latter while the heat is still on, and the latter relying heavily on his own campaign experience.
According to the New York Times, Biden has been meeting with at least 16 current and former aides over the past five days at Camp David in rural Maryland, while Trump, who spoke to Fox News over the weekend, was holding “policy talks” with allies in preparation for what is expected to be a dramatic showdown on the debate stage from CNN’s Atlanta studios.
With an old movie theater and an airplane hangar set up as stages for the mock debate, Biden, despite erratic times and no set schedule, is preparing to attack Trump on issues such as immigration and abortion and to counter claims, backed up by various video tapes, that Trump is confused and weak, The Times reported.
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On the left is former President Donald Trump, and on the right is President Joe Biden. (Fox News)
Biden’s mock debates will reportedly feature his personal lawyer Bob Bauer playing the role of Trump, while the team helping him prepare is led by former White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain and includes National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, current White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, White House Counsel Steve Richetti, and campaign officials Anita Dunn, Mike Donilon, Ben LaBolt, Jen O’Malley Dillon, Cedric Richmond, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, Quentin Fulks, Michael Tyler and Rob Flaherty.
Former White House official Brian Deese is also reportedly planning to assist.
Three sources familiar with debate preparations told NBC News that Biden’s advisers are studying the former president’s recent comments to see what topics irritate him the most — all in an effort to unsettle Trump, who has appeared more disciplined in recent days.
Insiders reveal how Biden and Trump are preparing for the first 2024 presidential debate
Former White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain. (Andrew Haller/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
One source told the outlet that the aim was to hold a “Trump rally,” while another specifically noted that Biden would attack the former president’s 2020 election loss and subsequent actions that led to the January 6 protests, potentially angering Trump by making him feel like he’s been called a “loser.”
These sources told NBC they believe attacking Trump’s post-2020 election behavior will help bolster Biden’s support among independents who may be disappointed by Biden’s continued insistence that he actually won the election.
A Biden campaign official told the outlet that the president must strike a “delicate balance” because he wants to be seen as “the adult in the room.” The official also said Biden doesn’t need to “troll” Trump because the two men’s contrasting visions for the country are clear enough without it.
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Former U.S. President Donald Trump takes to the stage to deliver the keynote address at the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s Path to the Majority Policy Conference at the Washington Hilton on June 22, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
Trump kicked off his campaign on Saturday with a rally at Temple University in Philadelphia and the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s Path to the Majority conference in Washington, D.C. Fox spoke with Trump while in Philadelphia, and he said his “best strategy” was to be around people who yell questions at him.
During the rally, Trump jokingly asked the audience how he should approach the debate stage.
“How should I deal with him? Do I be harsh and mean and say, ‘You’re the worst president ever,’ or do I be nice and gentle and let him talk?” he asked.
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Trump later told Fox he wasn’t worried about Biden’s debate preparations and was confident in his own abilities.
“Well, I think if he prepares, he’ll be OK. And he’ll prepare and then forget about it an hour or so later. So we’ll see what happens. We’ll see what happens,” Trump said.
Fox News Channel will broadcast a simulcast of the CNN presidential debate on Thursday, June 27 at 9:00 pm ET.
Get the latest 2024 campaign updates, exclusive interviews and more on Fox News Digital’s Election Hub.
