President Joe Biden's aides are training him to be “fired up” when he faces former President Donald Trump on stage at Thursday's debate, three people familiar with debate preparations told NBC News.
Biden and several White House and campaign aides have been at Camp David in Maryland this week to prepare the president for the first presidential debate, which is scheduled to air Thursday on CNN and be moderated by the network's Dana Bash and Jake Tapper. While sequestered at Camp David, aides are preparing Biden to counter all of Trump's tactics, preparing for the president to rile up insults and attacks to get on his opponent's nerves, sources said. NBC News. (Related: 'Don't drop the bar on the floor': Low expectations can't save Biden's sleepy debate performance, observers say)
“If I were to give advice to Biden, I'd say make fun of Trump,” former Vice President Dan Quayle told NBC News. “Make fun of him, and he'll get mad.”
As part of Biden's strategy, the president may reference the 2020 election and infer that Trump “lost his temper” and sparked the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, three people familiar with the preparations told NBC News. Biden's allies reportedly believe Trump could lash out if he feels like a “loser” on the debate stage.
More than 2 days.
Tune in Thursday at 9pm ET. pic.twitter.com/Zly6PNMiXT
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) June 25, 2024
At Camp David, the president is setting up a mock stage equipped with lights and props to recreate Thursday night, The New York Times reported. reportThe days spent preparing at Camp David don't follow a strict schedule, instead varying in length and not tightly structured, a person familiar with Camp David planning told The New York Times.
According to the New York Times, aides are preparing to ensure Biden stays on track while also addressing policy proposals put forward by Trump.
Sources say the formal mock debate between President Biden and his team has begun at Camp David, with the president using the podium to rehearse and aides acting as stand-ins for President Donald Trump and debate moderators.
— MJ Lee (@mj_lee) June 25, 2024
The first presidential debate of the 2024 election cycle will take place months earlier than originally scheduled, despite the Trump campaign repeatedly saying the former president was ready to take part in the debate. Discussion Biden said, “Anywhere, anytime, anywhere,” proposing two debates between the two. However, the proposed debates came with some conditions that the campaigns wanted. The Biden campaign, which proposed two debates early, before October, also reportedly said they didn't want a live audience, wanted a select network to host, and only the two candidates on stage.
Donald Trump lost two debates against me in 2020. He hasn't appeared in a debate since.
Now he is acting like he wants to argue with me again.
Well, have a great day, my friend. pic.twitter.com/AkPmvs2q4u
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) May 15, 2024
Within hours of the proposal, CNN claimed the first schedule, then finalized many of the proposals the campaigns put forward after both candidates agreed to participate. (RELATED: Trump reveals Biden team's latest debate hopes)
Ahead of the debate, Biden and his communications team were forced to clean up after the president was caught on camera having a few senior moments. At the White House Juneteenth celebration, Biden It looked frozen Biden was seen on video as Vice President Kamala Harris and other attendees danced around him. A few days later, Biden took part in a skydiving demonstration at the G7 and appeared lost until Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni spotted him and nudged him back to the group. After the G7 visit, Biden attended a campaign event where, again, he appeared frozen. Former President Barack Obama: Grab the President's Wrist And then they took him off the stage.
Biden freezes on stage at fundraiser, Obama rushes to the rescue
Biden freezes again…this is elder abuse. 🫣 pic.twitter.com/DMrtiJC4tl
— Sumit (@SumitHansd) June 17, 2024
The White House responded to the videos, arguing that media outlets, including the New York Post and the Republican National Committee (RNC), and social media accounts had edited and trimmed the videos to disparage the president.
“It was a cheap, I mean, cheap fake. It was a cheap fake, absolutely. That's right. It was widely fact-checked. That video was widely fact-checked, including by conservative media, about what happened, what happened,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said of the footage of the president at the G7.
Amid growing concerns about Biden's fitness to be president, some political commentators told the Daily Caller they were considering whether the bar was being set too low for Biden ahead of the debate. (Related: 'Don't drop the bar on the floor': Low expectations can't save Biden's sleepy debate performance, observers say)
“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 some time to prepare and rest.”
Trump himself appears to be raising the bar for Biden ahead of Thursday's debate.
“All I can say is this: I watched him vs. Paul Ryan and he crushed Paul Ryan. Paul Ryan with water. He was sipping water left and right. I didn't know a human being could drink that much water at one time. And he beat Paul Ryan,” Trump said on the “All In Podcast.” “So I'm not underestimating him. That's the reality. We'll see how it goes.”
