Former President Donald Trump is finally scheduled to debate President Biden on Thursday night, but strategists say new debate rules are “unfavorable” to Trump and could undermine his strengths as a debater.
Trump last month remained mum about any concessions that might have been needed to get Biden on the debate stage, and he quickly agreed to terms that could have hurt CNN.
“Every element of this argument works against it. [Trump] “This is a big deal, both from the perspective of the expectation-setting game and the format,” veteran Republican strategist John Thomas told The Post.
“But in some ways, Trump has painted himself into a corner, given the fact that he has been taunting President Biden in debates for months.”
Trump himself, 78, Washington Examiner speculates “I thought that when they presented it and I said no, they would say there can’t be a debate because Trump said no,” Biden’s campaign said.
But now Trump is trapped in a debate format without a live studio audience, with no room for remarks, and extremely difficult to interrupt because his microphone is cut off when it’s not his turn to speak – not to mention Trump’s long history of bitter conflict with CNN.
“There’s a difference between agreeing to the rules and following them,” said Republican strategist Kevin Madden, who believed Trump’s aggression could still shine through despite the constraints placed on him.
“I’m sure his staff was not happy with the terms of the debate that CNN put forth,” Democratic strategist Brad Bannon said. “I’m not sure that the restrictions they placed on the candidates would accomplish exactly what CNN wanted.”
“Donald Trump is going to be Donald Trump with or without a microphone. I think Trump is inherently aggressive.”
The microphone situation could also work to Trump’s advantage. During his first debate with Biden in the fall of 2020, Trump frequently interrupted and at times ignored the moderator. Some of his supporters said he got “too heated.” In such a situation, a microphone could curb Trump’s more harmful tendencies.
“I think the mute button actually works to Trump’s advantage because it allows Biden to fill the spot, and Biden can’t stop talking if Trump interrupts him,” said Republican strategist Brian Sejczyk.
“For Trump to win, he needs to become less Trump-like.”
“It gives Donald Trump an opportunity to appear smarter and more rational,” said Republican strategist Terry Holt.
Without the ability to interrupt, Trump would be forced to cede time to Biden, which could bode well for Trump as some Republican strategists are skeptical that Biden can deliver a fully coherent speech in the allotted time.
“I think their concern is whether our candidate can speak for an hour on stage without collapsing,” Republican strategist Liz Mair said bluntly about Biden. “Even if we had a Young Turks-sponsored debate, we’d have the same fundamental problem.”
Still, Trump is likely to be stripped of a key asset in his toolkit.
“One reason is that muting the microphones is generally detrimental to Trump is that one of the weapons he uses so effectively against his opponents is to catch them off guard and off balance and keep them off balance,” Thomas said.
“I think the biggest rule working against President Trump is … there’s no live audience. Trump is an entertainer and, in a way, he feeds off the reaction of the audience and takes his cues from the audience.”
In preparation for the debate, Biden has holed up at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland, gathering with close advisers and allies to prepare.
The incumbent is Often reported to be underperforming In the first round of the presidential debate, both men were presidents, but this time, both men were presidents.
Trump’s debate preparations appear to have been much more subdued, and strategists have offered differing views on this.
“Trump is an improvisational guy. He’s fortunate in that he tends to have better natural sound bites, or at least sound bites that grab news attention, than Biden,” Mair said.
“Trump can do some funny things.”
“I don’t think Trump likes preparing for debates because he doesn’t like other people telling him what to talk about or what to say,” Bannon said. “Joe Biden is very disciplined.”
Bannon also noted that the Biden campaign and its allies have been running ads slamming Trump for his conviction in the Manhattan hush money case and the sexual assault allegations in the E. Jean Carroll case, and predicted that Biden will be “very aggressive” at the debate.
“I have many candidates preparing for the debates. [of] “Be careful not to overprepare, because having too much information in your head can leave you bogged down in the moment,” Thomas says.
Many strategists felt that despite the debate’s structure, the debate posed a greater risk overall to Biden than to Trump because of doubts about Biden’s intellectual competence.
“Biden will have to prove he has the stamina and mental fortitude to get the job done. Voters will have to seriously consider whether they can tolerate four more years of Donald Trump,” Sejczyk said.
“Unless Anita Dunn invents a time machine between now and November, there’s nothing Biden can do,” Mair said, noting that Biden’s economic performance has alienated most independents.
“Honestly, I think this is going to be completely awful,” she later added. “If I don’t see this, I’m probably going to want to move to Borneo or somewhere, because it’s going to be that bad.”
Bannon suggested the debate would help Biden upend Republican perceptions of his age, stressing that Trump is similarly prone to gaffes.
“I watched a video of Trump’s recent rally and he Shark and battery “And a lot of things,” he said. “I think the real question is whether President Donald Trump can be as calm and as forceful as President Biden.”
In the days leading up to the debate, Trump and his supporters have become more vocal in their complaints about how the debate is going, targeting CNN in particular.
“They could have negotiated more on the terms of the debate,” Thomas said. “I still think there’s a way for President Trump to win here, he’s just going to have to do it with his hands tied.”
Trump has also sought to build excitement for Biden, publicly spreading unfounded speculation that he’ll be excited to get his ass kicked before the debate.
At a pre-debate press conference, senior advisers suggested Biden might be taking Adderall to help him focus, after months of highly publicized gaffes and major missteps.
“We know that Joe Biden will have absolutely superhuman strength when it comes to big events, debates, the State of the Union address, those kinds of things,” adviser Jason Miller said.
“He’s very prepared. He’s been doing this for 50 years so he’s got some muscle memory going.”
Still, many strategists saw the debate as a rare opportunity to change the outlook for a presidential election that has been somewhat stagnant.
“We haven’t seen much of a real campaign yet,” Madden said, joking, arguing that the 2024 campaign has been largely a bust compared to past presidential elections.
“Biden will have to prove he has the stamina and mental fortitude to get the job done. Voters will have to seriously consider whether they can tolerate four more years of Donald Trump,” Sejczyk said.
