What could be one of the most important political debates in recent memory will start on Thursday in Atlanta when former presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump circle off in the first, and perhaps the only, battle of the 2024 plan.
In light of polls that show Trump is in a thin but regular lead in Georgia and additional battleground states, Biden must face pressure during the 90-minute debate to show he’s not the sluggish codger Republicans portray him as and that he’s prepared to serve for four more years.
Trump will attempt to bolster the GOP’s assertion that the nation has suffered under Biden with his all but certain center. However, he will face criticism that will portray him as a chaos-driven, convicted murderer unfit for any common business, let alone a White House run.
For both, it has a chance to alter or cement the course of a strategy that has remained remarkably stable despite international policy crises, continuing criminal cases, and the first U.S. president’s first felony conviction.
The fight may help an increasingly negative public to review the two men for themselves because tens of millions of Americans are expected to tune into the earliest political debate in history.
At 9 p.m. ET, it will be broadcast live on most major system and cable channels, and it will take place inside CNN’s metropolitan Atlanta studios. What should you see closely for:
How do they both deal with health-related questions?
Biden and Trump have both had their mental and physical health evaluated, and they are the oldest applicants to have run for president in the history of the election.
Republicans have been questioning Biden’s ability to stand on the stage during the discussion for years and portray him as an elderly man who resembles a senile. Wary of setting lower expectations, Trump has just touted Biden as an expert thinker.
Democrats have highlighted Trump’s wandering speeches, and warned his promises of vengeance against social enemies and threats of large deportations, to name a few of his subsequent- word promises, are a portent of a darker agenda.
Previous Republican Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, who is backing Biden’s election charge, predicted a” box fit” that may provide great dangers — and great rewards — for both people.
According to Duncan,” There are a lot of people watching this debate play out,” according to Duncan. One of the main sticking points in the Trump world is” If Joe Biden shows up and has a physically and mentally strong debate,” he said.
How will Trump’s criminal troubles factor?
Trump will undoubtedly face some of the legal difficulties that come with it in Atlanta and other countries.
In a plot to conceal an alleged affair with a porn star, the Republican was found guilty by a New York jury in May.
Biden has, however, been reluctant to enter the criminal justice system out of concern that it might sway the GOP base.
This week’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll reveals how polarizing the criminal charges are. Nearly half of all voters polled say they approve of the New York jury ‘s , May verdict,  , including a bare majority of independent voters. And roughly one-third of independents polled claim that they are less likely to support Trump because of their convictions.
However, the verdict is opposed by by an overwhelming majority of Republicans, and Trump’s claim that the charges are the result of a weaponized political justice system has penetrated deeply into the party’s base. Trump and 14 other defendants are still facing racketeering charges stemming from his attempts to win in the 2020 election, a case that could be brought in as early as 2025.
” What they put this man through is unbelievable”, Republican state Sen. Brandon Beach said. ” It’s election interference”.
Will Trump erupt?
Biden’s comments to Trump may be more important than what the president himself says during the debate.
Their first debate in 2020 was marred by a string of Trump outbursts and interruptions, which made some of the drama unwatchable and helped Biden project a sense of authority.
Biden will likely attempt to portray a second Trump administration as chaotically chaotic. Republicans apprehensive about Trump’s handling of explosive exchanges with Biden, which would portray him as distant.
” I hope he stays focused on immigration and the economy — and then lets Joe Biden have to defend himself”, said former Republican U. S. Rep. Doug Collins, a Trump ally. ” Sitting presidents are n’t used to getting questioned, and this president in particular is n’t used to it”.
In a different way, Duncan said,” We are going to see if Donald Trump has suddenly discovered discipline.”
Will it have a lasting impact?
Sometimes, debates become a turning point in campaigns. Sometimes, they’re hardly remembered. Soon enough, we’ll be able to determine whether the Atlanta showdown is merely a footnote or not.
Fred Hicks, a veteran political strategist, outlined the challenges for both men:
Biden must find a way to “fire and inspire” Black men and younger voters to return to the polls.
Trump needs to win over the majority of centrists and Republicans, including those who supported the then-Gov. of South Carolina. Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign to rally behind him and put their worries aside.
” Both of these are tall tasks”, he said. And this debate will pose the most difficult test for them.
——-
©2024 The Atlanta Journal- Constitution. Visit at , ajc.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
