The president of the United States, Joe Biden, and former president Donald Trump faced each other in a tense face-to-face in the first televised debate of the 2024 elections, in which the Republican took advantage of his rival’s lapses to dominate the exchanges and prevail .
The mutual animosity that both politicians profess was clear at the beginning of the debate, when they did not shake hands when they came out on stage at the CNN studio in Atlanta where the meeting was held.
Biden stumbled on several points
Biden at times appeared to lose his train of thought and stumbled at several points, causing what some analysts described as “panic” within the Democratic Party.
Both candidates accused each other of lying on issues ranging from veterans and the border to the state of the U.S. economy and inflation.
Trump, while repeating claims that have been proven false or avoiding answering questions, repeatedly attacked Biden over his handling of the economy and foreign policy record, as well as record numbers of immigrant arrivals.
Biden, for his part, pointed to Trump’s recent criminal conviction and repeated that his rival is “a threat to democracy.”
This is the second time that Biden and Trump will compete for the White House after the Republican lost the 2020 election, although both have yet to be officially nominated by their respective parties.
After Biden’s poor performance, voices were heard from the Democratic side suggesting that the party should consider presenting another candidate in the November elections, something that at this point seems highly unlikely.
Unlike previous debates, this debate was held without a live audience and also featured muted microphones for the candidates during the speaking time allotted to their opponent, preventing the chaos that characterized the first Trump-Debate. Biden in 2020.
Biden doubtful and Trump on the defensive
According to the BBC’s North American editor, Anthony Zurcher, especially in the first part of the debate, due to his lapses and indecisions, Biden was on the ropes in many of the exchanges, in which topics such as the economy, immigration or the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
According to Zurcher, some of Biden’s responses were confusing and unclear, “which will undoubtedly increase the concern of many Americans that he may be too old to be president.”
Biden was also not helped by his hoarseness, which made it difficult to understand some of his answers and which his campaign officials attributed to a cold.
“But like a boxer on the ropes, Biden began landing big blows against his opponent in an attempt to turn the tide of the debate,” Zurcher said.
Biden, after recalling Trump’s conviction on charges stemming from an alleged relationship with adult film star Stormy Daniels, said the former president had “the morals of an alley cat.”
“I did not have sexual relations with a porn star,” Trump responded.
Trump repeated false claims
Trump also appeared defensive when discussing his response to the January 6, 2021 attack on the Washington Capitol and avoided answering some questions, repeating false claims in some segments.
But on the economy and immigration — the issues that American voters say in polls are most important to them — Trump was confident and clear in his attacks on Biden’s record, while the president’s rebuttals were less effective, Zurcher said.
“I really don’t know what (Biden) said at the end of that sentence, and I don’t think he did either,” Trump joked at one point.
According to Zurcher, Trump largely delivered a smooth and disciplined performance. “He avoided the kind of interruptions and belligerence that undermined their first debate in 2020 and, whenever possible, steered the discussion back to attacks on Biden’s record.”
“He repeatedly made claims that were unsupported by facts or were outright falsehoods, but Biden was largely unable to back him into a corner.”
When the issue turned to abortion, for example, the former president repeatedly diverted attention to what he said was Democratic extremism. He claimed, incorrectly, that Democrats support abortions after babies are born.
But Biden’s attacks in an area where he could have scored points failed.
The question of age
In recent months, many Americans have expressed concerns in polls about the age and fitness of Joe Biden, who is 81, for office, and, according to Anthony Zurcher, this debate did not allay those concerns.
“The president came into the debate with a low bar to clear and he stumbled. He was flat. He was rambling. He was unclear,” Zurcher said.
“About halfway through the debate, the Biden campaign told reporters that the president had been battling a cold, in an attempt to explain his hoarse voice. That may be true, but it also seemed like an excuse.”
When Biden was asked about the age issue in the debate, he briefly mentioned that during the first half of his career he was one of the youngest politicians elected to the US Senate. He then focused on his financial history.
As BBC journalist Courtney Subramanian points out from Atlanta, it is typical for a politician to answer the question he wants instead of the one asked, “but Biden has been dogged by concern about whether he will be able to stay in office for another four years. (he would be 86 years old at the end of a second term).
“The debate was an opportunity to provide a clear and forceful answer about why his age is an advantage and not a vulnerability and, unfortunately, it was a missed opportunity,” Subramanian said.
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