Editor’s Note: For another viewpoint, see Point: As Bad As It Can Get
It took all of 10 seconds for the first of three presidential debates between Joe Biden and President Trump to devolve into yet another Trump temper tantrum.
Time and again, moderator Chris Wallace begged, pleaded and at times even yelled at the president to stop interrupting his own questions — to say nothing of Biden’s answers — but his protestations, much like the rest of his performance, were largely ineffective.
Instead, the leader of the Free World adopted the affectations of a maladjusted 7-year-old: insult, complain and lie. Wallace, who raised six children into adulthood, failed to mature a seventh.
And then there was Biden.
It’s hard to imagine the kind of debate prep one does when preparing to confront a serial liar and lifelong cheat on national television, but after watching him on stage for 90 minutes, the former vice president steered clear of the mud fight Trump so desperately wanted to have.
Sure, Biden at times interjected when his record was falsely besmirched, or when Trump pulled entire budget estimates and nonsensical statistics out of thin air, but Biden managed to maintain an air of calm, frequently ignoring the dumpster fire to his right and affixing his gaze directly into the camera, addressing voters face to face.
He was, to put it mildly, the only adult on stage Tuesday night.
While Trump lied on stage about his response to the pandemic that has killed more than 200,000 Americans, Biden reminded everyone that he released a plan in early March on how to address the coronavirus outbreak, on the same day that Trump assured the country that the coronavirus was “going to go away … within two months.”
While Trump refused to apologize for insulting war heroes and Gold Star families and for calling American troops who died on the battlefield “losers” and “suckers,” Biden reminded viewers that his own son served with honor, and that enlisted men and women will never have to question the reverence that he, as commander in chief, will hold for them.
While Trump lied to viewers about his income taxes — he insisted he paid “millions” in income tax in 2016 and 2017, when in fact reporting from the New York Times show he paid just $750 each year, far less than the average firefighter — the Biden campaign released the full returns for their entire presidential ticket.
But there was perhaps no greater contrast between the two candidates on stage than when it came to actual policy. On the economy, on climate change and renewable energy, on public health and safety, on policing — Joe Biden showed voters that his administration will be ready on Day 1 to address the shortcomings that his predecessor created or exacerbated.
Biden’s record during the recovery from the Great Recession, his focus on job creation by investing in clean energy, his plan to reallocate police resources to focus on de-escalation instead of incitement, all put into sharp relief Donald Trump’s complete abdication of his office.
After nearly four years of running for re-election — remember, Trump filed campaign paperwork on Inauguration Day 2017 — the president failed to outline a single concrete policy proposal he would pursue in a second term.
Even a badgering Chris Wallace couldn’t coax an answer out of Trump on healthcare, rightly pointing out that “getting rid of the Affordable Care Act” does not constitute a healthcare plan.
Viewers at home certainly noticed the difference.
Focus groups of undecided voters used words like “arrogant,” “un-American,” and, incredibly, “crackhead,” to describe Trump’s performance, while Biden was “more professional,” “coherent” and a “leader.” Polls asking viewers who won the debate were even more lopsided.
There were small pockets of the country that did enjoy Trump’s performance, though — mostly white supremacists, who once again watched as the president declined to condemn their violent, racist behavior.
Even as his own intelligence officials warn that far-right extremists pose a national security threat, Trump name-dropped one of the more visible and violent groups, telling them to “stand back and stand by.” Members of that group were celebrating the shout-out online, even as the Trump campaign feebly tried to do damage control.
Absolutely nobody who watched Tuesday’s proceedings would describe the debate as “clear.”
But in its aftermath, voters could not have a better picture of what’s at stake this November.
