October 23, 2020 5:45:21 pm
President Donald Trump and former vice president of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden participate in the final presidential debate at Belmont University on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020, in Nashville, Tennessee (AP).
(Written by Jeremy W. Peters and Isabella Grullón Paz)
Like other presidents who have slipped in the polls after a widely criticized first debate, President Donald Trump benefited from low expectations Thursday night in the final debate before the election, a more civilized and far-reaching affair. less decibels than the previous one.
But his effort to demonstrate greater discipline was probably too little, too late, to shake up the career he needs to increase his chances of reelection, some of the country’s top political strategists and other observers said.
While some saw hope for Trump, others saw the same candidate facing the same challenging campaign dynamics.
“Nothing changed,” Matthew Dowd, a former senior adviser to President George W. Bush, told ABC News. “It was not a bull in a china shop. That doesn’t mean he won the debate. “
While Trump needed some kind of breakthrough to overcome former Vice President Joe Biden’s lead in the polls, Dowd later said he didn’t see that happen during the course of the 90-minute meeting. “Biden had an advantage coming in and he has an advantage coming out,” he wrote on Twitter.
The size of Biden’s lead, in the double digits in some national polls, is so great that all the good Trump did to his campaign was likely limited by Biden’s consistent performance. “Biden didn’t do a face-lift,” said Charlie Cook, editor of the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. “That’s all I needed to do.”
President Donald Trump and former vice president of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden participate in the final presidential debate at Belmont University on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020, in Nashville, Tennessee (AP).
Before the debate, many analysts saw parallels between Trump’s underdog position and the high stakes that President Barack Obama faced before his second debate in 2012, when he delivered sharper and more forceful rebuttals to Mitt Romney than previously and soon recovered in the surveys.
Certainly, many of Trump’s defenders sought to portray his performance in that way on Thursday. Many claimed he had triumphed over Biden, seizing the former vice president’s statement about phasing out fossil fuels as a devastating misstep.
Some praised the president simply for not interrupting. “Trump’s self-control is very impressive right now,” said Allie Beth Stuckey, a conservative writer and podcast host.
And others claimed that Biden had reinforced stereotypes about him as a career politician who inspires little passion.
First lady Melania Trump, left, and President Donald Trump, center, remain on stage as Democratic presidential candidate, former Vice President Joe Biden, right, walk away as the second and final presidential debate concludes Thursday. October 22, 2020 at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn. (AP)
David Brody, the Christian Broadcasting Network’s chief political analyst, said on Twitter that the president had “indeed nailed down on a very simple topic tonight and it is this: ‘What have you done Joe all your time in DC? You all speak without action. ‘
Brody concluded: “That message will have traction.”
But it was not certain that the evening would have much effect in a contest in which few undecided voters remain. Nor was it clear that the debate did anything other than reaffirm what most people already felt for both men.
Here’s what observers across the political spectrum had to say.
Donald trump
Trump supporters believed they had the moment every campaign dreams of in a debate: those 20 seconds or so in which their opponent makes a mistake that can be spliced into an attack announcement that can be repeated repeatedly during the final leg of the race. .
However, it was not clear that this was what Trump had after Biden challenged the president to produce a video showing that he had said he would ban fracking and then voiced his support for phasing out fossil fuels and federal subsidies. for oil companies.
“I’m not sure how much is going to change or can change at this point in the race this year, but if anything does change, that oil line is the one that will haunt it,” said Mary Katharine Ham, a conservative analyst. .
Republicans quickly began circulating one of those videos that showed Biden describing what he would do with fracking, saying, “We would make sure it gets removed.” Since then, the former vice president has repeatedly said he does not support ending the practice, a major source of jobs.
“Biden thinks the Palestinian Authority is stupid,” said Matt Schlapp, president of the Conservative Union of America.
Republican strategists also saw something they liked in Trump’s response to how he plans to handle the growing number of coronavirus cases across the country, revealing the deep division among many conservative supporters of the president, who want a generally more non-interventionist approach to the president. government. , and most other Americans, who believe in taking steps like requiring the wearing of masks in public.
Ari Fleischer, a former Bush aide, said that many Americans would find something more hopeful in the president’s message, compared to what he saw as the pessimism of Biden’s words. “Trump is right in learning to live with the virus,” Fleischer said. “We can and must fight the virus and live our lives. I suspect that Trump’s message about living with it trumps Biden’s message about dying with it. “
Brad Todd, a Republican strategist, echoed that point, saying that many Americans are wary of strict locks. “Biden talks about bailouts and closings; Trump talks about reopening. That’s a nice contrast for the president and he should have this fight here, ”Todd said.
But Tony Fratto, who also worked for the Bush administration, raised what some strategists have said is Trump’s Achilles heel: his drop in support among older people. “Continuing to insist on the fact that the young are less likely to die will not help close that gap with the elderly,” Fratto said.
Joe biden
Biden’s defenders seemed to anticipate that Trump would be qualified on a curve. But they tried to remind people that any perception of great improvement was relative.
“I’ve seen more Trump debates than any human being,” said Ron Klain, a Biden aide who helped him prepare for the debates, less than an hour into Thursday’s event. “The ‘new’ Trump never lasts more than 40 minutes”.
And Tim Miller, a Republican strategist who supports Biden, said the president’s ability to demonstrate self-control should not be confused with good politics. Describing the president’s response to being challenged by Biden about his handling of the coronavirus, Miller asked, “Was the president’s job to convince Americans that he has a plan to deal with this pandemic or to convince Americans that he can behave? like a good boy for 4 minutes? Because it was a blow to the first one. “
One of the biggest unknowns in the debate was how Trump might try to make Biden nervous by making unsubstantiated claims about his son Hunter’s business activities in China and elsewhere.
But when Trump raised the issue, he found himself defensive when Biden flipped the question, asked about Trump’s taxes, and pointed to a recent New York Times report that exposed a previously undisclosed Chinese bank account that belonged to. to the president. Even some conservatives admitted that Biden had played his hand well when Trump had to take the time to explain why he had not released his tax returns.
“Biden had a shrewd strategy on Hunter’s allegations to include him in Trump’s taxes and bank account, and it worked,” said Rich Lowry, editor of the National Review.
Ezra Klein, the editor-in-chief of Vox, said Trump seemed taken aback by Biden’s response. “It’s amazing how easy it is to distract Trump from the one attack he clearly prepared for tonight by pushing him on his tax and financial returns,” he said. “It would be funny except for the same total lack of focus that defines his presidency.”
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