Trump Refuses to Participate in a Virtual Presidential Debate

“Not Going to Waste My Time”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gykktfoKa04

Trump says “I’m not going to waste my time on a virtual debate.”

The Commission on Presidential Debates said Thursday the two candidates would participate in the next presidential debate from remote locations, after a growing number of people in the White House tested positive for the coronavirus. The first presidential debate and Wednesday night’s vice presidential event were in-person but included social-distancing measures crafted in consultation with the Cleveland Clinic.

Mr. Trump quickly balked at the change.

“I’m not going to waste my time on a virtual debate,” Mr. Trump said on Fox Business Thursday morning.

“We’ll pass on this sad excuse to bail out Joe Biden and do a rally instead,” [said Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien.]

Excellent News For Those Rooting For Biden

Other than something physically happening to Biden, Trump’s only shot at winning was a knockout stumbling by Biden in a debate.

Trump just voluntarily removed that option. 

Mish  

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RunnerDan
RunnerDan
3 years ago

TRUMP IS WILLING TO DEBATE BIDEN!!!

“Let’s fight after school, one-on-one, without all your friends around.” -Trump

Classic!

Jdog1
Jdog1
3 years ago

The fact is that Trump will win unless the Democrats are somehow able to steal the election. The proof of that is Pelosi’s obsession with invoking the 25th Amendment when he does. If she does that, it will be a declaration of war and the gloves will be off. It is time to prepare for war.

bradw2k
bradw2k
3 years ago

“Not going to waste my time” How insulting that is to all Americans.

Avery
Avery
3 years ago

No need for one of the candidates to give third base coach signs to Lester Holt like in 2016.

AshH
AshH
3 years ago

Thinking it’s too late for Trump for the remaining debates to have much effect on the outcome anyway.

Trump’s best chance now is probably something underhanded — either rogue electors, or getting enough individual state results thrown out, denying Biden from reaching 270.

CzarChasm Reigns
CzarChasm Reigns
3 years ago
Reply to  AshH

Replace “probably something” with “anything and everything” & you got it.

Jojo
Jojo
3 years ago

Trump doesn’t want to go virtual on the debate because so much of his shtick depends on in your face BS, ignoring questions and talking over other people. None of that works virtually, where the moderator can easily mute someone.

In fact, this is probably how all political debates should be presented in the future. You’d have a set of 8 ft tall video screens in an auditorium standing where the candidates in person would normally be. The candidates might each be in an isolated back room with cameras showing every detail, so they couldn’t have prompters holding up signs or such. The moderator(s) would be physically at a desk in front of the screens.

The debaters would then go through the debate as usual, but they wouldn’t physically be on stage. For anyone who ignores rules, time limits or acts rudely, it would be very easy to mute them.

Can you imagine Biden actually answering a question put to him while Trump onscreen is gesturing wildly, his mouth is moving, he has that crazed look in his eyes but no one can hear him? That would be too funny!

Casual_Observer
Casual_Observer
3 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

It would be the highest watched debate in the world ever.

numike
numike
3 years ago

I voted already

Augustthegreat
Augustthegreat
3 years ago

Stupid is what stupid does. Steroids just make tRump stipuder.

Eddie_T
Eddie_T
3 years ago

My thinking about more debates….is that neither Trump nor Biden want them…..because…no matter what the outcome…it has more potential to hurt than help.

Most minds are made up…The only thing that might change that is some real blockbuster screw-up…and either candidate is capable of being his own worst enemy on a given day.

No much upside…..but a fair amount of risk. That’s how I handicap this situation.

Jojo
Jojo
3 years ago
Reply to  Eddie_T

The only reason Biden took the debate is because he knows that Trump would have called him chicken if he didn’t. Now with Covid, he gets the debate commission to eliminate the remaining debates. That is how you play 4-d chess.

Eddie_T
Eddie_T
3 years ago
Reply to  Eddie_T

Neither of these two candidates could beat a good 15 year old amateur at 2D Chess…which makes me question this 4D chess analogy. What a crock.

ajc1970
ajc1970
3 years ago
Reply to  Eddie_T

99% of the time, if you’re behind (Trump is), you want debates, and if you’re ahead (Biden is), you don’t want debates.

Trumps has very little time to catch up… Biden screwing up in a debate was one of his last chances.

Henry_MixMaster
Henry_MixMaster
3 years ago

Could you imagine how sterioided up Trump would do on live television?It would be the first debate with the craziest cranked to eleven.

Jmurra
Jmurra
3 years ago

In this game we all lose. Neither candidate has the capacity to unify and lead the country and the policy of both is more debt, inequality and dollar devaluation.

Zardoz
Zardoz
3 years ago
Reply to  Jmurra

Biden has a lot of republicans endorsing him. This is what unification looks like, even if it’s only against a greater threat.

Jojo
Jojo
3 years ago
Reply to  Jmurra

That may be true but the only valid choices available are devil evil or a bit less evil.

Lance Manly
Lance Manly
3 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

The thing is Biden is not evil at his core, sure maybe a bit wavering on the path forward and not having the policies that would make people on this board happy, but not evil at all. One of my favorite headlines.

Jojo
Jojo
3 years ago
Reply to  Lance Manly

I didn’t mean evil in the sense of real evil, as Trump is. More like Biden is also brought and paid for like just about every politician and we are not going to see any grand changes from him.

Webej
Webej
3 years ago
Reply to  Lance Manly

Biden is the quintessential US lawmaker: Someone who is there to sell what the lobbyists are dishing up. Hardly knows what’s in the legislation. Goes with the herd. Always helping the usury crowd (Delaware, lax rules for Insurance and Credit Card Companies, get rid of traditional American bankruptcy legislation [one of the best things about America: no perpetual debt bondage]) and going along with the warmonger lobby. And with his chipper optimistic I’m a regular guy pleasant vibe, the very best guy to be the face of the most cynical stuff).

Biden is the very epitome of American corruption.

Sechel
Sechel
3 years ago

Biden just rejected Trump’s offer to schedule two new debates on the 22nd and 29th. I would have done the same. The commission sets the debate schedules not Trump and a debate a week before the election is too risky and Biden doesn’ t need to take that risk. If Trump wants two debates he should simply honor the existing schedule. It’s not Biden’s fault Trump refued to follow CDC guidelines and got infected.

randocalrissian
randocalrissian
3 years ago
Reply to  Sechel

I was amused by Biden saying he would slide the town hall back a week, then clapped back with this epic comeback when Trump tried to get his way. Biden said I can get away with it, but you can’t. He just owned Trump there.

Rocky Raccoon
Rocky Raccoon
3 years ago

The comedy of this is Trump’s masterful 4D chess game was supposed to provide proof that Biden is senile and incapable of handling the duties of the president, but that plan didn’t play out in his 4D chess game as Trump didn’t give Biden enough time to talk to drive that point home.

Sechel
Sechel
3 years ago
Reply to  Rocky Raccoon

This was Chris Christie’s genius. The amateur psychologists decided if they kept interrupting Biden he would get flusterd, lose his train of thought and appear senile.
It backfired of course. Biden’s been doing this for decades.
And now Chris Christie is ruminating over his genius from a hospital bed

randocalrissian
randocalrissian
3 years ago
Reply to  Rocky Raccoon

It makes me wonder if Trump was already hopped up on Dexamethasone, and thus infected with COVID, at the first debate. Why else would they refuse to proudly display Trump’s last negative test results?

Sechel
Sechel
3 years ago

Very understandable Trump is refusing.

He’s still infected with covid
His handlers have Covid, he can’t prepare.
A virtual debate reminds viewers that Trump is sick
Trump performed miserably in his first debate

Trump is behind in the polls by a significant margin. Trump needs the debates. Biden does not.
Its quite possible we will not see any more debates.

Casual_Observer
Casual_Observer
3 years ago
Reply to  Sechel

Why can’t Trump hold online meetings to prepare ? This is how BUSINESSES ARE FUNCTIONING. The truth is Trump doesn’t want to change anything and thinks the country is doing fine. He lives in some alternate universe of Trump and his idiot minions. I hope they all get hospitalized soon.

randocalrissian
randocalrissian
3 years ago
Reply to  Sechel

The simple answer is that the magical alignment of the real world and Trump’s imagined world, which endured from mid 2016 until he fumbled the coronavirus response, is out of phase. It’s miraculous they ever aligned. This is simply a reversion to an enduring mean.

KidHorn
KidHorn
3 years ago

Trump thinks Biden will be fed what to say. And he may be. But Biden stinks at reading while talking. He misreads and you can see his eyes moving side to side.

Biden was clearly told that if he gets stuck, he should call Trump a liar, a racist or urge people to vote. These responses will seem odd in a virtual debate.

Trump may be making a mistake.

Zardoz
Zardoz
3 years ago
Reply to  KidHorn

Another one?

Lance Manly
Lance Manly
3 years ago
Reply to  KidHorn

They started one January 21, 2017

Escierto
Escierto
3 years ago

Trump should just resign. Everything he has done in the past week is just digging himself a hole. The Biden camp must be celebrating this latest Trump decision.

Doug78
Doug78
3 years ago

We know how it will affect card-carrying Democrats and Republicans. What is important is how it affects those who are independents. They, as always, are the ones who decide the election. Something like 38% describe themselves as independents yet the two parties keep preaching to their own followers and think they are coming up with good arguments. They aren’t.

Casual_Observer
Casual_Observer
3 years ago
Reply to  Doug78

Only 6-8% are undecided. Biden is going to hit 60% threshold soon. If it isn’t obvious to you most independents have already decided, it should be. This isn’t January.

Doug78
Doug78
3 years ago

I doubt you can speak for most independents. I doubt you can speak for any.

Zardoz
Zardoz
3 years ago
Reply to  Doug78

This is why we have polls.

Steve_R
Steve_R
3 years ago
Reply to  Doug78

I voted against Clinton in 2016, I am an independent and the only trump I would vote for is Mary, for telling the truth in her book. Also if u are interested the Lincoln Project is running ads against trump. They are Republicans, that are voting for Biden.

Casual_Observer
Casual_Observer
3 years ago
Reply to  Doug78

The independents are speaking for themselves. You can choose to see whatever you want but that doesn’t make it not true.

randocalrissian
randocalrissian
3 years ago
Reply to  Doug78

Have you taken the time to look at the polling in subgroups of demographics? Biden has been up by around ten percent with independents for weeks. I’m pretty sure your answers are all there in plain sight just begging for you to look for them.

jfpersona1
jfpersona1
3 years ago

{Sticks fingers in ears}

“Can’t hear you! — LALALALALALALA…!”

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