On CNN this Thursday night, President Joe Biden and his predecessor, Donald Trump, will square off in what promises to be a historic first debate of 2024.
This will be the first debate between a sitting president and a former president. Additionally, this will be neither man’s first debate appearance since their two confrontations in 2020, a year in which Trump’s management of the coronavirus outbreak dominated the political scene.
The presidential debate on Thursday is set to happen at the earliest point in the election cycle that a discussion including the contenders of the major parties has ever taken place.
Biden, who is now the oldest president in US history, must now consider his own record. Additionally, Trump has a criminal history that includes accusations related to his handling of confidential materials after leaving office, two indictments resulting from his attempts to rig the 2020 election, and his conviction in New York for falsifying company records pertaining to hush money payments. Hunter, Biden’s son, who was found guilty of possessing a firearm and is often singled out by Trump and other Republicans, agrees.
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The discussion is being held around three miles from the location where Trump stood for the first-ever mugshot of an outgoing president following his accusation of attempting to tamper with Georgia’s 2020 election results.
CNN’s Jake Tapper and Dana Bash will moderate the ninety-minute discussion, which is scheduled to begin at nine o’clock ET. There won’t be an audience, and it will happen within the network’s Atlanta studios.
Three things to look out for in the discussion on Thursday night are as follows:
Their disagreements on immigration and the border
Republicans and Trump have made the border a major campaign platform, and Trump has promised to “remove known or suspected gang members, drug dealers, or cartel members from the United States” by using federal authority. Along with these more ridiculous ideas, he has suggested creating a UFC migrant league.
Biden’s inconsistent immigration policies allow the president to show that he is a caring leader who wants to protect families, careers, and lives, but they also expose him to criticism from opposing sides.
As soon as he assumed office, Biden modified or canceled several of Trump’s strict immigration measures. However, he later reversed some of those actions when the number of migrants increased, border communities were overrun, and his popularity declined. He had worked on the most comprehensive bipartisan immigration reform bill in years, but Trump killed it so he could use the subject to further his political career against Biden. In addition to restricting border crossings, he has issued executive orders shielding certain unauthorized immigrants from deportation.
CNN has been informed by sources that Biden is anticipated to take a strong stance on immigration, characterizing Trump’s measures as harsh and his own as humane.
Their disagreement with foreign policy
It’s no secret that Trump has a soft spot for Russian President Vladimir Putin. His opinions on the US and NATO’s assistance to Ukraine, which has been fending off a Russian incursion for almost two years, are a little elusive. But based on what we do know, it appears that Moscow would enjoy a second Trump administration far more than Kyiv.
A few days ago, Reuters revealed that two of Trump’s senior foreign policy advisors had drafted a proposal that would, in principle, put an end to the conflict by requiring Ukraine to engage in peace negotiations with Putin before the US would provide deadly help. Russia would receive less support in this framework if it did not come to the table.
What remarks Trump will make on abortion
Trump pledged in 2016 to approach abortion and reproductive rights with caution. While most liberals thought he would make every effort to overturn Roe v. Wade, many conservatives doubted that he would.
There is a comparable divergence across the political spectrum eight years later. After openly applauding the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe, right-wingers are now periodically irritated by Trump’s reluctance to publicly support a nationwide abortion ban. The left knows for sure that Trump will adopt the most conservative stance if elected.
The content of what Trump says in the debate won’t be as interesting as how charming he is seen to be.
Though it seems improbable, the former president may try to strengthen his position with the religious right by taking a firm stance on the matter. More likely, he will criticize Biden, sidestep the topic, and, at most, raise his selections for the Supreme Court and argue that the states should handle it.
The way the GOP primary transpired contributes to some of this volatility. Trump did not participate in any debates, and the contenders who did were largely silent on a topic that, despite its importance to certain conservatives, has greatly retaliated against even the most centrist.
