The verdicts came quick and harsh in the hours after the Biden-Trump debate Thursday evening. Commentators called it “disastrous,” “fumbling” and “devastating” for President Biden. Democratic operatives “panicked” and “scrambled” to limit the damage. Some suggested it might be time for Biden to step aside.
I would choose a different word to describe the event: confounding.
Politically speaking, Donald Trump’s jugular was exposed for all to see. But on the most important issues in this election and in the most important moments, Biden seemed unable to go for it.
The No. 1 issue in this election is the future of our democracy. Trump is on record repeatedly describing how he wants to get rid of it, using the Justice Department for revenge, mobilizing the U.S. military to quell demonstrations, punishing dissent, and defying the Constitution. Far-right conservatives have even given him a play-by-play instruction manual on how to organize an autocracy.
In recent months, overwhelming majorities of Americans have said they worry about democracy, a repeat of the Jan. 6 insurrection, political violence and Republicans allowing white supremacist factions and Christian nationalists to dominate their party.
But when CNN moderator Jake Tapper asked Biden on Thursday whether he believes Trump and MAGA Republicans are determined to destroy American democracy, Biden lacked the passion of his remarks days before the 2022 midterm election.
“My fellow Americans,” the president said then, “we’re facing a defining moment, an inflection point. And we must — with one overwhelming, unified voice — speak as a country and say there is no place — no place — for voter intimidation or political violence in America, whether it’s directed at Democrats or Republicans. No place, period. … We’ll have our difference of opinion. And that’s how it’s supposed to be. But there is something else at stake: democracy itself.”
The debate was confounding because it allowed Trump’s torrent of lies to go unchallenged, except for Biden’s weak, rushed and scattered responses. Tapper and fellow moderator Dana Bash chose to watch the clock rather than challenge questionable responses from either candidate.
It was forgivable because their job was to moderate, not enter the debate. However, CNN would have done viewers a great service by following the debate immediately with fact-checking. The network knew Trump’s proven propensity to exaggerate, level false accusations and outright lie. There should never again be a presidential debate that allows falsities to linger for hours or days before they are corrected.
This debate was also confounding because Biden gave short shrift to global climate change, even though he’s done more than any previous president to mitigate it. Outside CNN’s studios, Americans were being left homeless by wildfires, tornadoes and floods. The Associated Press reported, “Severe weather over days has caused havoc and destruction across the U.S.”
As of June 10, at least 964 tornadoes had struck the country. In April and May, three major outbreaks of more than 100 tornados each leveled towns from Texas and Louisiana to Iowa, killing 32 people.
While Biden and Trump were on stage, historic floods afflicted the Midwest, setting records in South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa. Experts predicted the disasters would continue deep into July.
Debate-watchers in New Mexico, North Dakota, Colorado and Montana buckled down for violent derechos (widespread wind storms) with large hail and winds up to 70 mph.
During the debate, large fires were blazing in Alaska, Oregon, California, New Mexico, Washington, Arizona, Utah, North Carolina, Florida, Colorado, Montana, Nebraska and Oklahoma. As of June 28, nearly 21,000 large wildfires had scorched parts of the U.S. this year.
Yet Trump continues to ignore climate change, much like he ignored the COVID pandemic. When Bash asked him about it, the former president avoided answering, claiming he “had the best environmental numbers ever” during his administration. Yet he pulled the United States out of the Paris climate agreement and reversed the climate policies of the Obama administration. He rolled back more than 100 environmental rules during his term. His legacy includes a conservative Supreme Court that is rolling back more.
Finally, the debate was confounding because Biden’s handlers apparently coached him to recite long lists of data about his accomplishments. That’s what websites are for. Two-minute segments are better spent on big themes and messages, like Trump’s threat to democracy, Trump’s felonies and his racist characterizations of immigrants as terrorists, drug dealers and criminals.
After the debate, some Democrats wondered whether Biden should step aside so their convention could nominate a younger and more dynamic candidate. MSNBC reporters interviewed California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) for his reactions; he urged Democrats to work even harder for Biden.
But Newsom’s articulate, surgical and damning critique of Trump’s record served instead to demonstrate the communication skills Democrats will need to send one of presidential politics’ greatest hucksters into retirement.
William S. Becker is a former regional director at the U.S. Department of Energy and author of several books on climate change and national disaster policies, including the “100-Day Action Plan to Save the Planet,” and “The Creeks Will Rise: People Co-Existing with Floods.”