One of the very few things I’m enjoying about the post-debate catastrophe is just the immediate consensus that Donald Trump was to blame. A few people have tried the “both sides” arguments, but they’ve been shouted down for the most part. Casual viewers and political commentators are in agreement: Trump was the one who came across like a fascist lunatic and crackhead. One of the biggest problems with Trump’s debate performance was that he wouldn’t STFU for ten seconds at a time. So now the debate commission says they’re seriously considering cutting his mic for the next two debates:
The commission that oversees the general election presidential debates said Wednesday it will be making changes to the format of the remaining two debates. One key change it plans to implement: Cutting off the microphones of President Trump and Joe Biden if they break the rules, according to a source familiar with the commission’s deliberations. The plans have not been finalized and the commission is still considering how it would carry out the plan.
The Commission on Presidential Debates is responding to Tuesday’s face-off between President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, which was marred by frequent interruptions by the president and mud-slinging. In a statement following the presidential debate in Cleveland, Ohio, the first of three scheduled in the run-up to the general election, the commission said the event “made clear that additional structure should be added to the format of the remaining debates to ensure a more orderly discussion of the issues.”
“The CPD will be carefully considering the changes that it will adopt and will announce those measures shortly,” the organization said. “The Commission is grateful to Chris Wallace for the professionalism and skill he brought to last night’s debate and intends to ensure that additional tools to maintain order are in place for the remaining debates.”
An informed source told CBS News’ Norah O’Donnell the commission will spend the next 48 hours determining new guidelines and rules for the second debate. The organization is working on all possible solutions, but the source said that “we are going to be making changes.” At the top of the list is controlling the two candidates’ microphones and their ability to interrupt one another and the moderator. The campaigns will be informed of the rules, but the source said the rules will not be subject to negotiation.
Oh God Norah O’Donnell is the moderator of the next one? Pretty, intelligent, no-nonsense Norah? Trump is going to call her “nasty” and tell her she’s not attractive enough to sexually assault. And 38% of the country will cheer him for it. This is a nightmare. As for the idea of cutting off Trump’s mic… I mean… it seems like a dumb solution to the larger problem, which is that Donald Trump is a f–king lunatic. But sure, cut his mic. As soon as he realizes his mic is cut, he’ll just start screaming and telling his Nazi supporters to rise up though.
Speaking of, it sure looks like Trump doesn’t want any more debates! We know that because he’s Hector Projector and he said yesterday that Joe Biden doesn’t want any more debates. Trump said, at a superspreader Nazi rally in Minnesota, “You know Biden lost badly when his supporters are saying he should cancel the rest of the debates. Now I understand he’s canceling the rest of the debates. Let’s see what happens. I think that’s not gonna be a good move for him.” Biden has, in fact, said that the next two presidential debates should happen. Trump is bigly scared. Make room in his Baby Bunker.
"Now I understand he's canceling the debates" — Trump is just totally making stuff up. Biden has not canceled either of the two remaining debates. pic.twitter.com/rmWE1dkpay
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 1, 2020
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
Thank you baby jeezus. I felt sick and filthy after watching trump. And it lasted well into the next day.
Me too, and I only saw clips on Twitter. I didn’t eat yesterday but then at night I was shaky so I decided to have a veggie wrap, and well, that did not work out well for me. I think I’m okay this morning. He literally makes me sick. I don’t know what to do if he doesn’t go away.
I want to hug you so much. I cannot imagine being stuck on your continent right now. It sounds like a complete nightmare. I am so very deeply sorry for the many kind and intelligent american people who have to witness this sh!tshow on a daily basis and can do very little about it. I do however believe that there is a real chance that he loses. I want to believe.
Thank you, this means a lot actually. 🙂
Darla – my mum had Narcissistic Personality Disorder, like Trump. I could only watch a few minutes of the debate because it reminded me of how impossible it is to have a constructive argument with someone with NPD. He was cycling through the same argument playbook my mum used – deflection, minimization, mocking, anger. I felt sick watching and have tears in my eyes even writing this, because having a parent that treats you like that has a devastating impact on children, and certainly did on me.
I’m not from the US, but can imagine how powerless and angry you guys must feel to have someone like this as your President. It is just awful, I’m so sorry.
I’m sorry but why tf is the commission lifting any fingers to change a system that everyone but Donald Trump can follow? Why even pretend that he might participate in the next two debates with even a shred of good faith?
Instead they need to cancel the debates and use the time and platform to let voters ask questions of the candidates instead. And yank Trump off stage the minute he begins an attack on Biden.
The MAGAs will scream that the mute button was used unfairly against their beloved leader by the lying media. If the debates were cancelled, they would claim the Commission/media were protecting Biden. It will always be something with that cult.
Much as I’d love for Trump to be dragged off with a hook around his neck, because the only TV show he belongs in is the Gong Show, it’s late in the game for the commission. All they can do is try to reinforce standards of behavior and as they do, it will make it increasingly obvious how aberrant he is – and how ‘normal’ and unflappable Biden can stay under pressure.
Trump was clearly hoping he could bully Biden into dropping out (first), so that he could be off the hook for the next 2 debates & call Biden a coward. It didn’t work. Biden is moving right along in his campaign and the debate commission is doing the heavy lifting.
Tuesday night did activated two very different groups: It raised a lot of money for the Biden campaign and it further activated domestic terrorists. This is one crazy fight and Trump is increasingly desperate. Hang in there!
I don’t see a need for any further debates. We saw everything we needed to see on Tuesday. If anyone is still undecided, they need to work on themselves because something is broken.
Trump should do even worse in the second debate (if he doesn’t make an excuse to drop out). It’s a town hall format, so the candidate that is better at empathizing with everyday people should do better. That candidate won’t be Trump. Just have there be a single mike that the moderator passes around so he can’t talk out of turn.
Trump’s campaign is already screaming that the Commission is protecting Biden because he has dementia and lacks the ability to answer Trump’s brilliant questions. Go forward with the debates and if the orangutan can’t behave himself, let him run off the stage.
Let’s not insult orangutans because that fetid cesspool favors their natural coloring for his maquillage.
“maquillage” is such a wonderful word.
I think Biden’s stutter happens like mine – in stressful situations. Explained the hesitancy and last minute substitution of easy words at the debate. The debate was a nightmare, having to stand beside a loser like Trump would destroy me, but Biden acquitted himself well- he was Presidential. I could not watch more than 10 mins at a time. I was really hoping to see the Obamas make some campaign appearances, but changed my mind when Trump gave the Proud Boys their orders. Stay safe!
I think Trump was trying to get Biden to stutter. He doesn’t understand Biden isn’t a thin skinned crybaby like Trump.
A politico article noted that Dump’s advisors were studying ways to trigger Biden to stutter. Dump tried to do that with all his interruptions but it didn’t work. Dump is an evil man. And enablers just at bad.
There needs to be Nuremberg trials soon because a lot people enabled a monster.
“instead they need to cancel the debates and use the time and platform to let voters ask questions of the candidates instead”
That is what they are doing. The next debate is a town hall. I think Biden does very well in that setting, and Trump wasn’t as combative with the host when he did one in Sept. in Philadelphia. He’s not empathetic, and it shows very clearly in the town hall format.
Steve Scully is the next moderator, not Norah O’Donnell. Kristen Welker is doing the third.
The next debate – cutting off the mics is essential, because its a town hall. The people who are there don’t want to hear Trump shutting over everything.
There are always going to be some interruptions during a debate. But I think cutting off the mic when the other candidate is talking is necessary here. Also, letting Trump just talk for 2 minutes without interruption just shows how BSC he is and how he has no plans, so let him go.
You just know he’s going to yell at one of the town hall people.
They really do need to cut the mics. But if he’s blabbing and interrupting anyway, I would love to see an entire section of the townhall collectively roar “SHUT THE F0C7 UP!” at him.
I don’t believe Norah is the next moderator for the presidential debates. It’s Steve Scully.
Did we even need debates at this point? The President of the United States couldn’t and wouldn’t disavow white supremacy. That’s all you need to know. Anyone undecided at this point is looking for a reason to vote Trump.
^^ THIS ^^
They’re from a pre-Trump era in which polarization was not as extreme and candidates had policy positions that sometimes overlapped. Television allowed candidates to get their messages and personal appeal to reach as many potential voters as possible. Trump has no policy positions except for hatred, corruption and greed, so the format doesn’t make sense in this campaign.
Agree about the ‘undecideds’ – they want attention and the media gives them way too much of it, as if their (fake) ambivalence is an indication of deep thought.
WATP, I agree that debates feel a little bit obsolete at this point given our 24-hour new cycle and social media and online outlets. Even more so because Trump has no policy positions to offer, which was indeed the main reason to watch candidates debate. And the low ratings seem to bear this out.
I think debates could still be valuable but since Trump cannot or will not engage in good faith, they should be cancelled. He is wasting everyone’s time with his garbage.
Agreed.
At this point, the debates serve no purpose. Trump lies non stop. Nothing relevant comes out of his mouth. I don’t understand how anyone can be undecided at this point.
I’m old enough to remember the Kennedy/Nixon debates and as foul-mouthed and crude as Nixon was privately, the two were total gentlemen to each other, waited for the other to finish speaking, then debated the issue politely. What American political debate has degenerated into with Trump is truly shameful. The next debate is a town hall format so I can’t even begin to imagine how horrible Trump will be to the attendees. I hope they come armed with rotten tomatoes and cow poop so they can show him how they really feel.
Yes, we need the debates because canceling them is exactly what Trump wants. He has no policies, no plans for the next 4 years, all kinds of horrible things he is and did to defend and he doesn’t want to do that so he went out there and ruined the first one on purpose. He destroys everything and if we just shrug and say okay! Then he will have won at destroying this too.
Do not let him win.
I totally agree with everything you said, Berlin. Spot on.
“Anyone undecided at this point is looking for a reason to vote Trump.”
I disagree. For many, the choice is between voting for Biden and not voting at all. We need to give Biden the opportunity to make the case that people should vote for him. Some people don’t pay attention to politics on a regular basis as much as you or I might, but we still need them to vote.
Zoom would be a great place for the next debate. This would allow one candidate to answer a question in full while the other candidate was on mute and the answering candidate wouldn’t even have to be distracted by the other jabbering in the background. I can just imagine Trump’s angry sweaty orange face ranting while muted! This predator/fascist/racist/bully needs to go.
He hasn’t done much virtual campaigning, has he? He needs to infect people and feed off their energy, like some kind of monster.
Biden has been mixing modes from the start. He is comfortable in the various formats.
Trump is such an amateur.
That’s what I was thinking too. While it would be helpful for us, it would leave Joe within earshot as well as spittle range still if they are in person. And I am still so angry that Trump’s family took their masks off and no one escorted them out.
I saw photos on Twitter. This includes “sweet clueless” Tiffany. Folks she is all in that means the hands off rule no longer applies to her.
WHY is his face so ORANGE?? It’s disconcerting.
They were apparently out of cheap bronzer and had to go with Burnt Orange Pearl auto spray paint.
The hair and makeup tax deduction will be a little higher, so score!
and the line that goes down the side of his face near his ear, which is clearly where his shower cap was covering while he got sprayed…that will never NOT make me wonder – HOW can he think that looks good? I mean, he thinks his HAIR looks good, so he clearly had image issues but I mean…one side is orange and the other side is whitish/gray. and the white circles around his eyes? in close up shots you can see the creases around his eyes have the orange paint in the cracks…he looks like a cartoon and he doesn’t realize it.
It’s his ‘look’, and it’s ‘iconic’/distinct. Like Katy Perry with her black hair in the old days or Ariana’s ponytail. He’s too invested to change it
I think he only paints his face that orange – his baby fists don’t his face. Its make up, the night of the revenge of the TikTokers he was photographed getting off the heli with his collar undone and you could see that makeup stain on the white shirt.
So, this is what America has become. Ugly.
The 2 major party candidates can not control themselves or speak intelligently enough to participate in a civilized debate without having to be put under the thumbs of authority?
Christ on a cracker. High school students can do it.
I agree with the above comments, at this point I do not believe anyone is undecided who to vote for, Trump has shown his ass repeatedly. He is exactly who he is, what else is there needed to say?
“So, this is what America has become. Ugly.
The 2 major party candidates can not control themselves or speak intelligently enough to participate in a civilized debate without having to be put under the thumbs of authority?”
No. One candidate cannot control himself or speak intelligently, let’s not pretend it was both of them.
Just because the debate commission is making uniform rules that apply equally, does not mean that everyone doesn’t know only one of them created the need for a rule change.
Right, sa. Trump is not a debater. Biden would wipe the floor with him on the issues, so Trump’s goal is to disrupt the actual discussion of issues by attacking Biden’s son, etc. The best solution is to restore order forcibly, if necessary, by cutting the mic on the person not speaking. Trump won’t respect the rules of debate; this is the consequence of that.
One of the two major party candidates cam. The other cannot.
Don’t “both sides” this. Trump was the one who couldn’t control himself.
No, the Republican party candidate cannot. Biden did just fine, even great considering the sheer madness he had to put up with. Trying to pull a ‘both sides’ here is a very weak argument.
Biden was fine – he behaved like a gentleman, spoke directly to the camera, i.e. the American people, and spoke intelligently when the orange menace was trying to shout him down like a tantrum-throwing pre-schooler.
Only one major party permitted a fascist idiot to lead them. Biden and the Democrats followed the rules. Dump did not.
I say more debates because Dump is too lazy to prepare and he shows his idiocy in these events because he’s not surrounded by sycophants. He can’t handle that.
Scully will be good. Personally I’d rather not hear or see any tRump for the rest of my life but if there’s a chance it will turn off some of the crazies, then have at it. Keep in mind they usually only see Fux News and read trash so…
Aaron Rupar is a good follow on social media. He writing of Casino and he reign of terror is on point as well.
Bonus, he shares pics of his newborn.
He does have a lot of good content. The little one is a cutie!
As hard as it was to watch the first hour and the closing of the debate, it gave me a first-hand view of what happened. Media clips and brief social media takes don’t always capture context.
There was one core problem on that stage, and it was one person. The moderator was weak for the most part, but the real issue is that one candidate would not hold to the rules. Joe could not get 15 uninterrupted seconds to complete a thought. The “clown” comment came after it was clear Orange was going to incessantly interrupt and spew nonsense.
The “chaotic” label was 99 percent because of one person on that stage. If his mic is cut off, he can still blabber and disrupt.
And, apparently, the chaos was a strategy. The Trump campaign has been portraying Biden as having major cognitive disabilities and was working overtime with that in the hours leading up to the debate, falsely claiming Biden wears an earpiece so someone feeds him answers, that he refused to let them check his ears, that he asked for breaks every five minutes. All lies. The chaos was intended to make him angry, lose his composure and calm, and begin to stutter. They would then use the stutter in ad clips to promote their argument that Biden is unfit.
They are truly evil.
This is exactly it. I’ve been a bit irked by how some of the media has presented this as both Trump and Biden creating the chaos when it was all Trump. Short of leaving the stage, there was nothing Biden could have done on his end to prevent that circus.
I’m all for cutting off the mic, for sure, but I thought I read somewhere, maybe the NY Times…that it would futile because the orange ones big mouth could probably just be picked up on Biden’s live mic anyway and that would be just as distracting.
Biden can walk away (well, within distancing rules) and won’t it look pathetic for Trump to be hollering like that?
It would be tempting to just let him rant and then, when he’s exhausted, say, “Are you finished now?”
Yeah why don’t they just have them in separate rooms with different cameras. The moderator asks a question of Biden and we only see and hear Biden’s response. The moderator allows Trump to respond and we only see and hear Trump’s response. Time limits and rules enforced via camera cutaways and microphone cutoffs. They need to completely produce the debate as if it’s a tv show not a typical debate. Is it right or fair that they should have to do this to manage the behavior of our president? No, but it’s the only way to enforce the boundaries and create a fair and level playing field with a cheater.
Instead of cutting off the mic when a problem arises don’t turn on the micl until it is time for that candidate to speak. So if Trump is speaking, Biden’s mic is off and vise versa. That way no one can claim unfairness. Just a thought.
@Kate – was posting when you were.
Trapdoors. Moderator controlled trapdoors.
this
Shock collar. I volunteer to monitor Donald’s remote. Who is with me?
I was thinking they could cut answer time from those that violate the rules (interrupting). Like how about consequences- like the rest of I’d have to live with!
First, I doubt Trump will agree to participate in debates where his Tourette’s is controlled, and his minions can spin his balk as a protest against censorship because “Free Speech!” But, this isn’t just Trump having no impulse control or flying high on Adderall or cocaine — there is a very interesting discussion going on (prompted by an excellent analysis posted on FB by Wes Kennison, a SUNY professor) that the constant interruptions are a deliberate tactic to trigger Joe Biden’s stuttering*. This is surely within Trump’s wheelhouse — we’ll all remember Trump mocking the disabled NYT reporter ‘til our dying day — but his handlers would have been eagerly coaching him to do this so they could use their bullshit about how impaired/old/incapable Biden is. They’re a**holes, but Biden has been dealing with this his whole life. That he prevailed is a testament to his resilience.
*There is also a great article in The Atlantic, published in January 2020, about Joe’s efforts to control his stuttering and how it played out in the primary debates. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/01/joe-biden-stutter-profile/602401/
I believe this was the whole strategy. Don’t bother trying to prepare Trump at all. Just feed him alt-wing tabloid crap about Antifa and Hunter Biden, no policy plans, and send him out there to disrupt Biden’s composure and trigger the stutter, which they would then use to claim he’s unfit.
yup. the interruptions etc were deliberate to throw Biden off and make him come off as doddering/senile etc.
he is a repugnant excuse for a human being. him AND his “debate” coaches.
I felt nauseous watching. I forced myself to watch. Of course Trump wants Biden to cancel. He wants the debate commission to cancel, but they won’t. He’s terrified. I trust that the regular people who ask questions at the town hall debate will ask good ones, shame Trump for his behavior, and Trump will go ballistic in one way or another, perhaps storming off the stage shouting that the debate is rigged. Let him. Whatever Trump does, Biden will be at his very best talking to regular people.
Rump is already complaining about the rule change and how he doesn’t think he should participate since he think he did great in debate #1. He is clearly looking for something to blame for his cancellation.
BRILLIANT. I will watch if that is the case, just so I can watch the meltdown when the mic is cut off. BRILLANT MOVE!
Trump already said he wouldn’t agree to a rules change. Biden won’t force the issue bc he’s a decent human. Trump will pivot and not act like a f*cking lunatic in a town hall setting that doesn’t lend itself to that kind of action, the press will fawn all over how “presidential” he looked. Rinse > repeat.
I think if they change the rules, Trump will use it as an excuse to walk. I think he’s looking for one because he’s a sh*t debater and knows it. Doesn’t mean they shouldn’t change the rules anyway. But I’m not sure they will.
Clearly his base has lived up to Trump’s earlier prediction; that he could shoot someone in the street and they’d still love him. The debates aren’t going to change their minds. Nothing will. They are in all the way, because in their black hearts they are him. They’d trade places with his ilk in a second because success at any and all costs is their perverted American Dream. And the single issue voters will scream “taxes” and “abortion” and “borders” until they pass out to justify their heartless vote. The Republicans know this, and I think they see the debates now as more of a liability and just another distraction they have to distract from.
Trump will probably find a way to weasel out of the last 2 debates, maybe use any changes to the rules as an excuse, like he’s doing with mail-in voting. He’s not just scared, he hates the aftermath, the humiliation and criticism. He’ll just keep holding rallies and make himself feel better by staying in his protective bubble.
It’s really now an us vs them situation. Not many minds will change in the next 5 weeks, regardless of what comes of the campaigns. It’s up to the voters. The worst (and hopefully the best) is yet to come.
I’ve heard a few word-of-mouth stories of staunch Trump supporters changing course after the debate actually. One (someone my mom knows) was turned once he heard Trump refusing to agree to a peaceful transfer of power becaues “that’s not how America works.” Another one was on twitter and they didn’t say why the Trump supporter switched sides. I wonder if some Republicans know on some level how dangerous he is but they don’t want to vote off-party for any policy-related reason. So if they can find something else to justify switching, like Trump admitting he won’t respect the democratic process, they will latch onto that as their excuse.
God I hope so.
Thank you for sharing. I need snippets of bright spots to ease my anxiety!
God another rally in Minnesota? Im so disappointed in where i grew up. Soo many old friends ive had to unfriend on Facebook i would’ve never thought theyd be so racist and mysognistic
He doesn’t want debates because he doesn’t know HOW to debate. He just wants to stand in front of a crowd of people who love him and clap at every asinine, nonsensical thing he says.
They should be absolutely cancel the rest of the debates. We could not possibly know any two major party candidates better than we know these two. What additional information could any voter need to make a decision at this point? Also, Biden should not continue to legitimize Trump by meeting with him. Trump should be treated as what he is – the leader of an extreme regime that has no respect for democracy.
Someone suggested putting Trump and Biden in two separate boxes, like one of those isolation booths from some 1950’s quiz show. They each get a few minutes to answer a question and then the mic goes off. Each can hear the responses of the other but they are not allowed to cut the other person off. I’d watch just to see Trump turn 25 shades of orange and try to climb up the side of the booth when Biden mentions the magic “750” number.
Also they need to check both for wires. Because there was this big furor over a “wire” and now it’s just been disproven two days after the fact. No wires or wireless headsets, in fact have them roll their cuffs up. Check their ears etc.
Biden must NOT quit the debates. He needs to be seen as strong and he doesn’t need to respond to Trump’s cheap attacks. Let Trump explode and let Trump walk away. Trump can’t handle people standing up to him because he isn’t used to it. He also can’t stand being ignored. Keep it to policy and the future of the nation when Trump tries to cheapen it with personal attacks. As they used to say about bullies when I was in school: “don’t let them get a rise out of you”.
They should have turned off the mic this time. I won’t watch again.
Town hall formats have historically not been good for Trump, it really highlights how WEIRD he is when he has to talk to a person, and not a crowd, and highlights how little he understands or cares about anything outside himself. He just can’t even simulate empathy or concern, it will probably be all he can do not to interrupt or ridicule the people asking questions.
If I were him, I would complain about the debate commission being unfair and try to get out if it, stick to rallies and twitter.
The commission just confirmed they will definitely do this. First, will they actually be brave enough to cut Trump’s microphone. But if they do… he will stomp off the stage. He won’t be able to handle it at all. At this point Bifen should launch into a speech about being the kid from Scranton …. apple pie… Jill … we like dogs … I won’t take your healthcare. I am still not sure I can put myself through watching another debate. After the first debate I had to take Advil
Is it wrong that his positive covid test announcement made me giddy?
My first thought was that Trump must really want to get out of the next two debates…
Hope he actually has a mild case, though. I want him to lose the election and then spend the rest of his life in court. Or exile. Or prison. I’m flexible.
He better not have infected Joe Biden, though.
Trump seems to still be running around to his fundraisers and rallies. Is he maskless?