Debate or Shark Week
The no softball reality of Thursday's presidential debate
If you expect there is going to be a debate this Thursday, congratulations for your enduring optimism.
No, I think at this point; if Donald Trump were going to back out, he would have. So, CNN is going to be hosting something at 8 p.m. Eastern Time.
Some weeks ago, Sean Hannity, agent provocateur of the far-Right, posited the claim that there was no down side for Trump skipping this debate. Most of it centered on the fantasy/conspiracy that Joe Biden would be “jacked-up” on something and beat Donald Trump and/or that the media narrative had set the bar so low for Joe Biden that he would win by merely showing up and remembering everyone’s name.
If only the above paragraph were a joke.
That said — the debate rules, Donald Trump’s Dunning-Kruger approach to debate preparation, and recent positive economic reports are pointing to a very different reality and one which, Donald Trump and his cadre of Corporate Media enablers, won’t like.
Joe Biden is going to do well on Thursday and it’s Donald Trump’s performance that should have been been given the “low expectations” narrative.
Why?
No staff assistance, no notes, no live audience, microphone muting when it isn’t your turn, and no opening statements are clearly major “balls and chains” for Team Donald. Joe Biden won the choice of lectern and whether to close first or last. Biden chose to close last, which means the often meandering Donald Trump will be stuck with 2 minutes of improv.
Maybe we’ll get Hannibal Lecter comments
or sharks versus batteries
or something worse.
But forget the closings, it’s the lack of notes and staff assistance which puts the pressure on Donald Trump.
Whatever weirdness Sean Hannity and his audience imagine is going to benefit President Biden, these two rules are devastating for Trump.
No notes means hours of debate preparation which Donald Trump won’t do. To be fair, I expect he’ll do an hour or two; but without notes, it’s going to be CNN’s Jake Tapper and Dana Bash having a field day with Trump intellectually.
And that’s really the point. Candidate Joe Biden has managed to put Donald Trump into this position:
Thursday is not a debate (Idealists and Pragmatists can feel free to disagree), it’s a side by side press conference closer to the BBC model than any Nihilist on the Right should be comfortable with.