re: #336 A Cranky One

I agree it will be a shitshow. But unlike the earlier debates, rump now has a record to defend. And it’s indefensible. So when he lies about his administration doing more than any previous administration, he’s open to comments like “that’s true, no previous administration has killed so many Americans”, etc. And “I take no responsibility” isn’t able to handle that.

Sadly, Democrats seem to lack the spine to really push back. But in this case, when they go low we need to respond in kind.

Trump honed his debating style during his 2016 primary debates, until he decided he was bored with them and determined their emphasis on answering questions was not playing to his base. He will continue to pull the same stunt — ignoring the real questions, blaming both the pandemic and the economic collapse on the Chinese, and (if the stock market retains its buoyancy thanks to the Fed) take credit for the continuing strength of the market. He will pivot to attacking Biden for Hunter’s involvement with Ukraine and lie about his successes.

After repeatedly promising to release his taxes and failing to do so, he has learned that he can say and do as he pleases and, somehow, his base goes along with the theory that any bad news is due to the “Deep State” undermining him. How does a moderator force a participant to answer a question when the candidate’s goal is only to promulgate his campaign message and turn every answer into promoting that message even when it has no ties to the actual question?