Behind the White House smokescreen that President Joe Biden is healthy, energetic and extremely alert behind closed doors, the first presidential debate between Biden and Donald Trump could be a turning point that determines whether the presidential election will succeed or fail.
The White House has denied the allegations, saying the concerns are hysteria stoked by Republicans and their allies in the right-wing media, but leading Democrats have also expressed concerns about Biden's health and his chances of reelection. Biden's sluggishness and weakness after the G7 visit have also been noted in international media. (Related: “Stumble, freeze, forget”: Foreign media reports that Biden's situation is worsening as he is “distracted” ahead of the 2024 elections)
Some political commentators told The Caller that Biden's gaffes and stuttering have become increasingly frequent, leading to low expectations for him ahead of the first debate – maybe too low.
“I think our team has to make sure we don’t drop the bar on the floor because right now we just go out there and we win. [for Biden]Sean Spicer, former White House press secretary and host of the Sean Spicer Podcast, told the Daily Caller, “He's a guy who's been in politics for 50 years, and he needs to remind everybody, including journalists, that he prides himself on being a great debater. And in fact, I think, just like with State of the Union, they're going to do what's necessary to give him time to prepare and rest.”
Many observers, especially on the right, have speculated that Biden may have taken drugs to boost his energy and focus during the State of the Union address, something Trump seemed to hint at as much during the first debate. tell His supporters claim that the president performs during campaign speeches because he is “excited.”
rear challenging The president and his campaign agreed to take on Trump and his campaign after Biden offered to hold a debate “anywhere, any place, any time.” The offer made by Biden and his campaign came with many conditions. Among the non-negotiable conditions were that there would be no live audience, it would be hosted by a select network, and there would be only two candidates.
CNN will host Thursday's debate with many of the conditions checked off: Both candidates will skip opening statements, the show will have two commercial breaks, there will be no live audience, and candidates' microphones will be muted while their opponents are answering questions. (RELATED: Exclusive: Trump campaign steps up drug testing demands for Biden pre-debate)
At one point, Trump claimed it had been suggested that the candidates remain seated throughout the debate.
With the debate guardrails seemingly favoring Biden, former White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley told The Caller that setting the bar too low doesn't matter.
“It doesn't really matter, because if Joe Biden walked out on stage and said, 'Hi, I'm Joe Biden and I'm running for re-election to the United States Senate,' the media would say, 'Oh my goodness, he's Churchill. What a great speaker. I've never seen anyone as good or as sharp as him.' So even though Joe Biden has been in public office for half a century and done nothing consistently, the expectations are always going to be low for him, the media is going to be on his side and rooting for him regardless of his performance,” Gidley told the Caller.
“Tactically you usually want to set the bar high for your opponent, but again, my contention is the media is going to cover him anyway,” he added.
Biden is coming off a tough week in the spotlight.
The president began this week looking frozen. video He was photographed at the White House Juneteenth celebration with Vice President Kamala Harris and other attendees dancing around him.
President Biden at the Juneteenth celebration at the White House on June 10, 2024.
Unedited clip from The Associated Press. pic.twitter.com/mU26qg3Ito— Clarity (@covid_clarity) June 12, 2024
The president at the time was Caught Biden was caught on camera during a skydiving demonstration at the G7 and returned to the group at the urging of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, but just days later Freezing During a campaign rally, former President Barack Obama grabbed him by the wrist and escorted him off the stage.
The White House responded to the videos by calling them “cheap fakes.” Press conference.
“I believe you're calling this a 'cheap fake' video, and that's exactly what it is: a cheap fake video. It was made with bad intentions. And some of your news organizations have made very clear that these right-wing, right-wing critics of the president have credibility issues because fact-checkers have repeatedly found them to be spreading misinformation and disinformation,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
Speaking to Newsmax, KJP described concerns about Biden loitering at the G7 summit as a “cheap sham” from Republicans. James Rosen TV Daily Caller pic.twitter.com/HKOVhFPv8X
— Nicole Silverio (@NicoleMSilverio) June 17, 2024
“Regardless of how he performs in the debates, everyone knows how much Biden has deteriorated over the last few years, and the public has suffered from his policies for a long time. Neither of those things are good for Biden,” Tim Murtaugh, communications director for the Trump 2020 campaign, told the Caller, adding that the Trump campaign has warned Biden to “not be shy about the fact that he's a very good candidate.”Stay awake as much as possible.”
One veteran politician in the Republican presidential race, speaking freely on the condition of anonymity to discuss the situation, acknowledged that the relentless attacks on Biden's mental health will likely lower expectations for his debate performance and make it easier for Biden to win praise for simply getting through it without incident. But it could be a double-edged sword: Lowering the bar for Biden might increase his chances of success, but it wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing for Trump if he performed well in the first debate, this person continued.
The Republican said many believe there is still a chance that panicked Democrats could try to put forward a candidate to replace Biden, and a strong performance in the first debate would calm those rumors. There is no doubt the Trump campaign would prefer to face Biden in a November debate rather than a potential successor such as California Gov. Gavin Newsom, the source added.
In addition to battling those who have wrongly labeled them a “cheap sham,” the White House communications team has also been battling concerns from Biden's allies, including some close to the Biden campaign.
The Wall Street Journal, based on interviews with at least 45 Republican and Democratic lawmakers, said most Republicans have concerns about Biden's fitness to be president, but some Democrats also expressed concerns.
The White House questioned the article's veracity, noting that the only negative comments on the public record came from Republicans.
Yes, it's a total editorial failure. translation:I wonder who they're taking orders from… https://t.co/akqlpuhGrG
— Ben LaBolt (@WHCommsDir) June 5, 2024
“Literally the only critic on record throughout this entire incident is Kevin McCarthy, whose interviews contradict previous statements he made. public and private “The president's comments in private were sharp,” Bates told the Caller. “And Democrats member of meeting
The Journal also noted that ahead of publication, the White House had “closely monitored” the interviews with lawmakers and appeared to encourage Democratic lawmakers to contact the paper for additional comment.
“They just told us to call them back,” Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-New York, told the Journal, referring to the White House.
“We thought it was important to make sure all perspectives were represented,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates told the Journal, adding that the move was to correct “false and politically motivated allegations.”
Biden's State of the Union Address The speech went fairly well — apart from mispronouncing the name of murdered 22-year-old Laken Riley, the president made it through without any major gaffes — but his performance didn't have a noticeable effect on his dwindling approval ratings.
Marc Lotter, strategic communications director for the Trump-Pence 2020 campaign, said even a gaffe-free debate performance wouldn't last long for Biden.
“This issue is going to dog the president throughout the campaign,” Lotter told The Caller, adding that he's not worried about setting the bar too low. “The president has had these moments. It was a terrible sight to see President Obama take him by the hand and walk him off the stage. I can't stress that enough. And I personally believe with all my heart that American presidents are judged entirely, but largely, by the image they portray, not by what they actually say.”
Echoing Trump's comments at a campaign event in Wisconsin, senior campaign adviser Jason Miller suggested Biden needed medication to perform well.
“President Trump does countless tough interviews every week, gives lengthy stand-up rally speeches and demonstrates elite stamina. He doesn't need to be programmed or injected with drugs like Joe Biden,” Miller told the Caller about concerns that the bar might be too low for Biden.
Trump will make the final remarks at the CNN debate after a coin toss
Click here for details Daily Caller: https://t.co/QDcBGU8gNP
— Henry Rogers (@henryrodgersdc) June 20, 2024
While insiders may not believe the low bar will have a significant impact on the debate's outcome, one presidential campaign veteran warned that Biden's drop in approval ratings could ultimately be bad news for the Trump campaign.
There's a line for Trump and his campaign when it comes to Biden's public decline, the sources told the Caller: If discussion of Biden's decline goes beyond serious questioning into ridicule, the campaign would risk creating a sympathetic figure that would tug at the heartstrings of young people whose grandparents are close in age to Biden, the sources said.
Trump himself warned against expecting too much from Biden at a rally in Wisconsin last week, calling him a “fine debater.”
Biden, meanwhile, will leave the White House to rest and prepare, spending the day before at Camp David.
Spicer expects the campaign will give the president time to rest and prepare, but he's confident the Trump team knows how to control public opinion no matter how the president performs.
“They are seasoned political activists. “They've all been involved in the debates at some level and they understand the need to set expectations going into the debate,” Spicer said. “And how to grab a win on the way back.”
