President Joe Biden has been at Camp David with his aides for several days preparing for a debate against his presidential rival Donald Trump, an event that will be crucial for both. The debate is scheduled to take place in Atlanta at 9 PM local time on Thursday (1 AM Friday GMT) on June 27. Polls show a strong and close competition between Biden (81 years old) and former President Trump (78 years old), with a significant portion of voters still undecided just five months before the election on November 5.
**Stark Contrast Between Biden and Trump**
The debate will reveal the stark contrast between the two men, who are the oldest candidates ever for the presidency of the United States, at a time when voters are questioning their mental competency and ability to manage the country's affairs at this age. Patrick Stewart, a political science professor at the University of Arkansas who has written a book on presidential debates, stated, "It’s an amazing test of their mental competence... It’s our chance to see how degraded it is or if it has degraded."
Stewart noted that they need to prepare for tough and uncomfortable questions with strict rules on speaking and commenting during the debate, in addition to the absence of an audience.
**Crucial 90 Minutes**
The debate will last 90 minutes on CNN. A source from Biden's campaign stated that the Biden team will focus on strengthening arguments and critiques regarding Trump’s extreme policies on abortion and other issues, emphasizing that they pose a danger to democracy and are financed by wealthy donors who write him checks. The source mentioned that Biden would not shy away from attacking Trump for his past actions, including his role in the Capitol riots on January 6, 2021, but he also wants to present himself as a wise and sober leader in contrast to Trump's chaos.
On the other hand, Brian Hughes, senior advisor to Trump’s campaign, indicated that Trump’s camp aims to put Biden on the defensive regarding his administration's record on immigration, inflation, and how he addresses a "volatile world," referring to the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza and the war in Ukraine.
However, many in the United States and beyond are asking whether the debate can actually change the outcome of the election, especially given the closeness of the polls between Biden and Trump.
**Historical Precedence: Debates Changing Election Outcomes**
Historically, there have been three instances where presidential debates in America changed election outcomes, and in those cases, elections were held within days or weeks:
- **1960 Debate Between John Kennedy and Richard Nixon:** A significant portion of those who watched the debate on television leaned towards Kennedy, who won the election by a very narrow margin.
- **1976 Debate Between Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford:** Carter made Ford deny the existence of Soviet dominance in Eastern Europe, leading to voter backlash among Polish and Czech voters, which was a pivotal moment that helped Carter win the election.
- **1980 Debate Between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan:** Polls were close at the time, but Reagan's calm presence helped alleviate doubts about his being radical and alert against the Soviet Union, leading to his eventual victory.
Thus, followers of the American elections will have to wait for the promised debate between Trump and Biden to see which way the pendulum of voter sentiment swings.
