Joe Biden won the first presidential debate on Tuesday night amid countless interruptions by President Donald Trump who was supposed to change perceptions as he entered the debate stage trailing in the polls. However, in the end, President Trump came across as a bully, as chaotic, as disrespectful, and refused to categorically denounce white supremacists.
“Are you willing tonight to condemn white supremacists and groups to say they need to stand down and not add to the violence and number of the cities as we saw in Kenosha and as we’ve seen in Portland?” moderator Chris Wallace asked Donald Trump.
“Sure. I’m willing to do that,” Trump said. “Almost everything I see is from the left wing. Not from the right wing.”
During the debate, Trump also told the Proud Boys, a far-right men’s organization with a history of instigating violence, to “stand back and stand by.”
He issued the urgent call after he was asked to condemn white supremacists and militia groups.
Just minutes after, Trump said he was “urging my people” who are “poll watchers” to go to voting locations across the country to do something he did not clearly explain, claiming that the election is or would be rife with “fraud”.
The debate was marred by constant interruptions, countless disruptions, name calling, leading to embarrassment. It was, in a way, the worst presidential debate ever.
President Trump entered the debate 7 points down in the polls, and he was supposed to change the perceptions, the dynamic, but he clearly failed to do that.
For those watching the debate, Trump failed to give them a reason to maintain the status quo and keep him in office for another four years.
Joe Biden was not spectacular, and did not seize many opportunities Trump handed him, for instance, on Trump’s taxes. But he was strong on the coronavirus and on his plans for the future. He appeared more presidential as well and those who watched the debate agreed that he won.
A CNN instant poll showed that Biden won the debate. The network explained that 39 percent of the watchers were Democrats and 36 percent were Republicans and the rest were Independents.
Before the debate, 56 percent believed Biden would win while 43 percent thought Trump would win. But after the debate, 60 percent of the watchers said Biden won and only 28 percent said Trump won.
TV commentators noted that Trump lost the debate because he was supposed to win, but he did not appear to have a clear plan to end the current chaos, the coronavirus pandemic, the economy in crisis and the racial divide.
Both candidates looked like two children fighting, or two adults arguing about nothing and everything.
Simon Ateba is Chief White House Correspondent for Today News Africa. Simon covers President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, the U.S. government, the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and other financial and international institutions in Washington D.C. and New York City.