Atlanta: A shaky, halting performance by US President Joe Biden in the first presidential debate against his predecessor Donald Trump ahead of the November 5 elections has once again cast the spotlight on his age, as many feared that the 81-year-old President is too old to serve another term. His hoarse voice and rambling responses failed to alleviate those concerns, with many reacting to his performance as “disqualifying” and a “disaster”.
Biden, 81 and Trump, 78, are the oldest presidential candidates who are competing in a rematch for a second White House term. The two men traded barbs on abortion, immigration, the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, their handling of the economy and even their golf games to bolster their chances as opinion polls predicted a neck-to-neck contest between the duo in November.
However, Biden’s voice was hoarse from what his allies called a cold, as he hurried through some of his points on the stage, stumbled over some answers and appeared to lose his train of thought at times. About halfway through the debate, a Democratic strategist who worked on Biden’s 2020 campaign called it a “disaster.” However, he found footing at the halfway mark when he attacked Trump over his hush money conviction.
Biden’s uneven performance against Trump
Both the candidates were under pressure to display their fitness for office, as Biden has been the subject of concerns over his age and mental acuity, while Trump’s overly aggressive rhetoric and legal problems remain a vulnerability. The two men did not shake hands or acknowledge each other before or after the debate.
Taking advantage of Biden’s stumbling performance, Trump launched a barrage of criticisms, including many well-worn falsehoods such as migrants carrying out a crime wave, Democrats supporting infanticide and his supposed victory in the 2020 presidential elections. At one point, Biden paused as he was making a point about Medicare and tax reform, when he seemed to lose his train of thought.
Tax reform would create money to help “strengthen our healthcare system, making sure that we’re able to make every single solitary person eligible for what I was able to do with the, with the COVID, excuse me, with dealing with everything we had to do with,” Biden said, pausing. “We finally beat Medicare.”
Trump jabbed Biden for being incoherent, saying at one point: “I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don’t think he knows what he said.” Even Trump’s staunchest opponents criticised Biden’s performance as the one of the worst debates and that it was “hard to watch”.
Reactions to Biden’s performance
Vice President Kamala Harris admitted that Biden had a “slow start” but it was a strong finish. “People can debate on style points but ultimately this election … has to be about substance,” she said. Reactions from other observers were less supportive, as Democrats also admitted that Biden had stumbled hard in his rhetoric against Trump.
A top Biden donor said, “There is no way to spin this. His performance was disqualifying. There is going to be a call for a brokered convention.” The donor said there could be fresh calls for Biden to step down, and it may come down to his wife Jill Biden to persuade him. Fundraising will “dry up,” the donor predicted.
Julian Castro, a former secretary under Barack Obama, said Biden had a very low bar going into the debate and failed to even clear that bar. “He seemed unprepared, lost, and not strong enough to parry effectively with Trump, who lies constantly,” he said. Political analyst Amy Walter said the debate only served to remind voters of Bidenn’s weaknesses.
“Obviously the biggest factor is that Biden still seemed old and raspy and less coherent than when he ran last time, and that’s going to be the big story, I think, out of the debate. I don’t think Trump really did anything to help himself beyond his existing supporters, but I think it is eclipsed by people’s impressions of Biden on his biggest vulnerability,” said Matt Grossman, a political science professor at Michigan State University.
Left-leaning political columnist Tyler Austin Harper wrote any Biden staffers who allowed him to debate “should never work again”, according to Forbes. Progressive Rebellion PAC Executive Director Brianna Wu, a fierce opponent of Trump, wrote that Biden is “beyond incoherent” and “looks old and weak”.
Who won the debate?
A majority of people who watched the presidential debate said Trump turned in a better performance than Biden, a complete opposite of the 2020 debate when the Democrat outperformed the Republican. A CNN flash poll showed that 67 per cent to 33 per cent of the registered watchers preferred Trump over Biden in the debate.
Before the debate, the same voters said, 55 per cent to 45 per cent, that they expected Trump to perform better than Biden. The poll’s results reflect opinions of the debate only among those voters who tuned in and are not representative of the views of the full voting public – in their demographics, political preferences or the level of attention they pay to politics.
A 57 per cent majority of debate watchers on Thursday night said they have no real confidence in Biden’s ability to lead the country, and 44 per cent that they have no real confidence in Trump’s ability to do so. Now, 36 per cent of debate watchers now say they have a lot of confidence in Trump’s ability to lead the country, only 14 per cent say the same of Biden.
(with inputs from agencies)
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