The main political TV show of the year – the election debate between Democratic President Joe Biden and former Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump – kicks off this week, US media reported.
The decisive debate between the presidential candidates will take place on Thursday, June 27 at 9 p.m. in Atlanta, Georgia.
It will be the first debate before the presidential election, which will be held on November 5. CNN’s 90-minute debate will feature a strict speaking schedule, a ban on taping and no viewers to give their reaction.
Both candidates, Biden, 81, and Trump, 78, are trailing in national opinion polls, and many voters are still undecided five months before the election. Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. failed to qualify for the debate, leaving the stage to Biden and Trump.
According to Patrick Stewart, a political science professor at the University of Arkansas, this debate format will take both candidates out of their comfort zone and force them to prepare for tough questions.
Oldest candidates ever
The debates will be an important moment for both candidates, who are the oldest ever to run for the US presidency. They are seen as an important test of their cognitive abilities. Stewart was quoted as saying by Reuters:
It’s an incredible test of their cognitive competence. This is our chance to see how much they’ve declined or if they’ve declined.
Biden is currently at Camp David preparing for the debate with his aides under the direction of Ron Klain, his former chief of staff. Klain also helped Biden prepare for his State of the Union speech in March.
Biden’s team has sought to highlight Trump’s extremist policies on issues such as abortion and democracy, portraying Biden as a stable and wise leader compared to Trump’s divisive approach.
Trump, meanwhile, prefers informal policy discussions between campaign stops instead of traditional training.
Biden’s campaign plans to highlight the stark contrast between the two candidates. An anonymous strategist advising the campaign said:
What he wants to do is have that split screen, show that contrast, and have President Trump be forced to account for his more extreme views.
Democrats are thinking about replacing the nominee
US President Joe Biden’s poor performance at the upcoming televised debate could lead to the selection of a new presidential candidate from the Democratic Party, US journalist Seymour Hersh said in a blog on Substack, citing sources.
According to the sources, as a last resort, if Biden’s speech is very poor, the current US leader and his advisers will be asked to agree to withdraw from the nomination at a national Democratic convention in Chicago in August and declare the process open to other candidates.
Replacing Biden in that case could be California Governor Gavin Newsom or Illinois Governor J. Robert Pritzker, Hersh pointed out. It is noted that in case of failure at the debate, the head of the White House will be able to show a better result in the second round, which will be held on September 10.
