As President Biden and former President Trump prepare for the first debate of the cycle, political strategists are offering advice on how the two men should approach the event.
The men will come together for the first time in four years when they face off in a CNN-hosted debate on Thursday as they seek to address voters’ concerns about their candidacies.
For Biden, he must address anxieties related to his age and fend off attacks on immigration and the daily cost of living. Meanwhile, Trump has to face his recent conviction in New York in a secret trial and attacks regarding his role on January 6, 2021.
“They need to be able to tune out or navigate each other to have the space to do what they need to do,” said Philippe Reines, a former senior adviser to Hillary Clinton who played Trump during 2016 debate prep.
The debate will offer the clearest opportunity yet for the candidates to contrast themselves this election cycle. The opportunity is unique given that both men are now running with established records.
The former president is currently tied with or surpassing Biden in the polls in swing states — a feat for Trump, given his multiple charges and his first conviction.
Biden has been preparing for the debate at Camp David with former chief of staff Ron Klain and a handful of advisers, and is reportedly holding mock debates, while Trump uses political meetings as a way to prepare for the debate. Those preparing Trump for the CNN debate include several potential vice presidential candidates.
“The first debate will be a moment in which we can reach a wider audience that is not yet tuned in to the presidential elections and highlight the stark contrast between Joe Biden, who is fighting for the American people, and Donald Trump, who is fighting for himself as a convicted criminal with an out-of-control campaign of revenge and retribution,” said a senior Biden adviser.
The advisor, however, lowered expectations about the weight of the debate, saying that “it is not a moment that we expect to define the trajectory of the election or move the poll numbers in the short term”.
However, Trump argued that the CNN debate will work in a three-on-one dynamic, with Trump having to defend himself not only from Biden, but also from the two moderators.
“The real benchmark for Thursday’s debate should be whether or not Joe Biden can defend his disastrous record on inflation and the runaway border invasion versus President Trump’s unquestionable record of success in his first term, and whether Biden can speak for himself without the participation and overt interference of two CNN moderators,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement.
“If given a fair opportunity to present his vision for America,” continued Cheung, “President Trump will lay out exactly how he plans to improve the lives of every American who suffers as everything becomes too expensive and every community is transformed into a border community, thanks to Joe Biden’s incompetence.”
Both men face distinct but still important concerns: For Trump, he is dealing with the fallout from the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Wade, as well as the January 6 attack on the Capitol.
But he is also grappling with his conviction in a secret New York case that found him guilty of falsifying business records. Additionally, he has been indicted in two federal cases, as well as a case in Georgia, for his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results in the state.
Some of these issues led Republican primary voters to vote for Trump rival Nikki Haley, though it remains unclear whether those supporters will return to their party in November now that she has said she will vote for the former president.
Erin Perrine, who served as communications director for Trump’s 2020 campaign and worked on Trump rival Ron DeSantis’s super PAC this cycle, said the former president needed to give his answer on abortion and “not get caught up in the that other Republicans have done or are doing.” ”
“This needs to be about his position, not anyone else’s,” she said.
Brian Seitchik, who worked on Trump’s 2016 and 2020 campaigns, reported that Trump needed to redirect any questions about the Capitol riot, his charges or his conviction in New York back to politics and what he accomplished during his time in office.
Seitchik also suggested that Trump should let the president speak more on stage. “The more Biden talks, the worse Biden gets,” he said.
At the same time, Biden is grappling with serious issues such as persistently low approval ratings, Democratic primary voters protesting his administration’s handling of the war between Israel and Hamas, and issues such as inflation and immigration. The president also needs to ignore the nagging issue of his age.
“I think President Biden can talk about his strong support for Israel,” said Robert Barnett, the famed lawyer at Williams & Connolly in Washington, D.C., who has worked on 10 presidential campaigns and advised on debate preparation. Barnett added that the president can “talk about his attempts to moderate Israel’s policies in this war that, unfortunately, has killed tens of thousands.”
Biden is also facing the recent conviction of his youngest son, Hunter Biden, for illegal possession of a gun. Barnett suggested that Biden should stay the course on how he has already handled the situation.
“In the same way he did throughout the Hunter Biden process, that is, he is president and, therefore, he cannot and will not interfere in the justice process. But he’s also a father who loves his son,” Barnett said. “I think it’s an easy answer that most people will relate to.”
The CNN debate won’t be the last time viewers see the two men side by side. They will have another opportunity to hear from the pair again in September in a debate hosted by ABC News.
But with attacks occurring between campaigns, the first few minutes of the CNN debate could set the tone for the rest of the night — and the second debate as well.
“From the first second, I mean, do they shake hands?” Reines said. “I mean, look, this has become a very visual thing and it’s going to intensify because people are going to look at the president, so this is going to start from the first second.”
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
