Last night, President Joe Biden and Donald Trump held their first presidential debate of 2024. We had predicted that the debate, hosted by CNN at its Atlanta studios with no live audience, would be “a bust.” It was, but in a slightly different way than we had thought. Many viewers and analysts seem to agree that Trump told tons of lies but was forceful and dynamic, and Biden told the truth but gave a very weak performance. We then learned afterward that Biden had a cold, which gave him a hoarse voice and other ill effects that hindered his performance.
The election is happening in just over four months, and a second, and probably final, debate between Biden and Trump is scheduled for September 10 on ABC. Presumably, Trump feels he did just fine last night and doesn’t have to do anything different next time. Thus, the question for Biden and the Democrats is, what lessons can be learned, and what is the best course going forward to maximize the chances of winning the election? Several things come to mind: