Now, the big question is: Will Biden be replaced before the election?
Both President Biden and former President Trump entered last night’s CNN debate stage with major vulnerabilities to defend.
Biden hoped to reassure voters that an 81-year-old could still project the vigor necessary to secure a second term, while Trump’s performance came on the heels of his historic hush money. conviction. Here’s how it went down.
Democrats panic over Biden’s performance
To Democrats’ dismay, a shaky-looking Biden stumbled over his words, while Trump took full advantage of the opportunity to air out old grievances and ignore the many cracks in his record.
Though Biden did manage to get a few zingers over the line — notably on immigration and Trump’s criminal record — his overall performance fell woefully short for many who’d hoped to hear a clear plan to take America forward. He failed to trumpet key policies, such as his moves to lower prescription drug costs, and was far from rock-solid on facts regarding the economy.
“Biden has a real record to run on and that didn’t come through tonight,” says Emily Amick, author of Democracy in Retrograde, an incisive primer on how to check into civic engagement even when you feel like checking out. “That is a real missed opportunity and frustrating. Voters want clear answers to their questions and concerns and we didn’t see that. One candidate has a real plan to make our lives normal, and one candidate wants to dismantle the very foundations of our country. That’s a clear contrast and that didn’t come through.”
Trump delivers falsehood after falsehood
A corollary of Biden’s weak performance was that Trump had ample opportunity to make misleading statements on everything from the economy to foreign relations. At one point, he falsely claimed that America has contributed more to Ukraine’s war effort against Russia than all of Europe combined, saying: “The European nations together have spent $100 billion, or maybe more than that, less than us.”
Trump reiterated his false claims that the 2020 election was stolen, moaning about the House’s Jan. 6 “un-select committee” and its “two horrible Republicans.” Asked whether he would accept the results of the 2024 election, he said “If it’s a fair and legal and good election, absolutely. The fraud and everything else was ridiculous.”
“You’re a whiner,” Biden retorted. “You can’t stand a loss; something snapped in you when you lost last time.”
Trump also repeatedly implied that his current legal troubles prove he’s being persecuted by the American justice system under Biden. “He indicted me because I was his opponent,” he protested.
Trump falsely claimed that there was a massive groundswell of support for the overturn of Roe v Wade, saying: “Everybody wanted to get it back to the states.” He added that Biden supports abortions post-birth, to which Biden retorted: “We are not for late-term abortion. Period. Period. Period.”
Not all of Trump’s statements met the bar for outright lies, but he still exaggerated on several other points. At one juncture, he claimed that he’d “funded” historically Black colleges and universities, aka, HBCUs. While he signed legislation into law that secured permanent funding for such establishments, they have several streams of income. Trump also claimed that he was solely responsible for lowering the cost of insulin, while actually, he only played a partial role — and Biden’s policy went far further.
Democrats suggest that President Biden should step aside
Biden’s pitiful showing in the face of what could have been a slam dunk has prompted serious questions over whether he’s equipped to continue as the Democratic candidate.
“This was like a champion boxer who gets in the ring past his prime and needs his corner to throw in the towel,” one Democratic lawmaker said per NBC News, stressing that Biden should bow out of the race.
It’s “time to talk about an open convention and a new Democratic nominee,” said another lawmaker who’d previously been a staunch Biden supporter.
As NBC News notes, in reality, the options for replacing Biden are pretty limited. If he doesn’t choose to step down of his own free will, he’d have to be overthrown by the Democratic National Convention delegates — many of whom owe their positions to a vow of support for Biden.
Vice President Kamala Harris defended her running mate’s record, telling CNN’s Anderson Cooper: “People can debate on style points, but ultimately this election and who is the president of the United States has to be about substance. And the contrast is clear.”
The Trump campaign declares victory
Trump co-campaign managers Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita declared victory before the candidates delivered their closing arguments, arguing that Biden “showed exactly why he deserves to be fired.”
“Despite taking a week-long vacation at Camp David to prepare for the debate, Biden was unable to defend his disastrous record on the economy and the border,” they said.
Zooming out: Some deeper analysis of last night’s debate
“We deserve candidates who inspire people and when that’s not happening it can be hard to engage at all,” says Amick. “The important thing to do is to remember the issues that matter to us. Do you want access to birth control? Do you care about paid family leave and childcare benefits? Do you want everyone to have the healthcare they deserve and the ability to pay off their college loans? The issues are more important than any candidate. So we have to focus on how to work for the things we care about.”
If you want to get a little deeper into the implications of last night’s debate, don’t miss this enlightening discussion with Brian Goldsmith, a former journalist, non-practicing lawyer, and mine of political knowledge. He got into the disappointment currently felt by so many Democrats, the lies told by Donald Trump, and much, much more.
