By: Phoebe Huang
The first presidential debate, which sets the record as the earliest debate in American history, will occur this Thursday between Biden and Trump. If each of these candidates takes any missteps, the controversy could follow them through the election.
A month ago, Trump was faced with convictions and potential prison time and became the first president to be convicted of felony crimes. The New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment illegally to cover up his shady actions. Trump has been trying to postpone jail time for very long, but will it last ? Even though he has been convicted, the show must go on.
This long-awaited rematch in Atlanta is a key deciding factor in whether the divided nation will choose either candidate to become the coming president. The two have been rivals for more than 4 years – and also are the oldest candidates ever to compete in a presidential race. For Biden, this debate offers a chance to point out his predecessor’s convictions and justify why he should serve a second term. For Trump, this is a chance to redeem himself and tell the nation why he will do better than his successor.
To this, Karl Rove, a leading Republican strategist who guided Bush’s two successful presidential runs says “This is a big inflection point. Can Biden be consistently cogent, causing people to say, ‘Well, maybe the old guy is up to it?’ And is Trump going to be sufficiently restrained that people say, ‘You know what, it is about us, not about him?’”
Trump’s advisors have recommended he focus on Biden’s weaknesses– inflation and immigration– instead of focusing on how the 2020 election was “rigged”. Biden has been advised to focus on attracting the attention of Democratic and independent voters, and perhaps even some moderate Republicans, and mention how much more intense a second term of Trump may be. They are expecting Trump to stay more calm compared to the 2020 election.
“This debate is an opportunity to show the American people what those of us who watch Donald Trump all day, professionally, are seeing,” says Rob Flaherty, a deputy campaign manager for Mr. Biden, “which is that he is more unhinged, he is more dangerous, he is out for revenge and anything that raises those stakes directly with the American people is a net positive for us. “
This event has been highly anticipated and will be the first time since 2020 that the candidates will go face-to-face in the same room. Gail Gitcho, a Republican, has offered his opinion on the effect the debate will have. “What voters are considering is how my life under President Trump was and how my life under President Biden was,” she said. “They are either choosing between presidencies or personalities — and they’re more likely to choose between presidencies.” The nation will be waiting for many issues to be discussed and evaluate the lives they have had under each president.