Former President Trump spent the hours before heading to Atlanta for Thursday’s debate with President Biden railing against his opponent and complaining about Fox News.
Trump, in a trio of posts on his Truth Social platform, ripped the president as a “threat to democracy” and the country and bemoaned that Fox had a top Biden campaign spokesperson on its airwaves ahead of the CNN-hosted debate.
“Joe Biden is a threat to democracy, and a threat to the survival and existence of our country itself!!!” Trump wrote in one post in all capital letters.
The attack on Biden as a threat to democracy has become a common one from the presumptive GOP nominee and his team, seeking to rebut a central argument from the Biden campaign.
The incumbent and his team have pointed to Trump’s refusal to accept the 2020 election results, his role in the violent attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and his calls for prosecuting opponents as evidence that the former president is a threat to basic U.S. institutions.
In a separate post, Trump decried Biden’s policies as a “NIGHTMARE FOR WOMEN when it comes to the Border and Immigration!”
The post hints at what is likely to be a major point of emphasis for Trump in the first presidential debate this cycle, as he seeks to highlight Biden’s handling of the southern border and crimes alleged to have been committed by migrants who crossed the border illegally.
Biden is likely to counter by citing his recent executive actions at the border, and he will almost certainly try to pivot to call Trump a danger to women because of his views on abortion.
In a third post, Trump ripped Fox News, questioning why the network puts on “so many Biden people, like Michael Tyler, communications director for Biden, who spewed lies with very little pushback? Amazing!!!”
Fox News had Trump campaign deputy communications director Caroline Sunshine on right after Tyler.
The former president routinely bashes Fox over some of its guests’ commentary, and his Thursday morning post was an indication he was tuned into the network hours before taking the stage in Atlanta.
Ammar Moussa, a Biden campaign spokesperson, responded to Trump’s Truth Social post by saying Tyler was “living RENT FREE in Donald Trump’s head.”
The debate, hosted by CNN and moderated by anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, is taking place in Atlanta at 9 p.m. EDT and will be simulcasted by most major outlets.
Updated at 12:57 p.m. EDT