How Biden can use the debate showdowns to his advantage

In quick succession on Wednesday morning, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump agreed to two presidential debates ahead of November. 

There’s ample reason to doubt these debates will actually happen, given that Trump is a prolific excuse-maker and notoriously unpredictable. Remember, he famously backed out of the second 2020 presidential debate in October and was a no-show to all of the Republican primary debates this cycle. And Trump’s daughter-in-law, Republican National Committee co-chair Lara Trump, is already sounding skeptical, claiming without evidence that the debates are rigged against him. 

But if they do move forward, Team Biden will be looking to take advantage wherever it can. 

The first debate is scheduled to happen in just six weeks, on June 27. It will mark the first time that two presumptive nominees have ever faced-off in a presidential debate before their respective party conventions.  

While debates rarely predict the outcome of an election, they do offer an opportunity to shake things up in a campaign. For Biden, this is a moment to needle Trump and get under his skin in the same way the campaign has started doing on social media and in some presidential speeches. 

And it’s an opportunity to clear up false impressions among the least engaged voters (like the 17% of Americans who wrongly believe that Biden, not Trump, is responsible for overturning Roe, according to a recent New York Times poll). 

Yes, Trump will lie. And he will be almost impossible to fact check on the stage. But for the Biden team the debates are still a rare opportunity to show the American public just who they are choosing between this year. 

We are nearing the start of summer, which not only means the end of the school year, but also the end of this current Supreme Court term. 

Rarely has there been a court with so many consequential decisions still pending. Here’s just a few that I’m keeping a close eye on: 

• Trump v. United States: The court heard high-stakes oral arguments last month on whether Trump is immune from criminal prosecution on charges that he tried to overturn the 2020 election. The timing of this decision may be as impactful as the outcome — as the longer we wait, the lower the chance that Trump sees the inside of any courtroom besides New York before the election. 
• Fischer v. United States: The question here is whether prosecutors properly charged hundreds of rioters involved in the attack on the Capitol. The ruling could also have implications for Trump, and could result in the dismissal of half of his D.C. federal charges.
• FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine: The fight over abortion rights is also back before the justices, as the court considers the widely used abortion pill mifepristone. At stake here is whether or not access to this medication (used in more than half of abortions in the U.S and approved by the FDA over 20 years ago) will be restricted. It is worth noting that access to abortion medication is more crucial now due to this very court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization nearly two years ago. 

Along with these decisions (and many others related to guns, social media, gerrymandering and more) I’m also keeping an eye on the court itself. Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas are getting older, and if Trump wins in November, it’s easy to see a world where they retire before 2028, giving him two more chances to shape the future of the court.

If you follow politics and are on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, you’ve almost certainly seen posts from @BidenHQ, the Biden-Harris campaign’s rapid response page. 

The account provides quippy responses to Trump and other top Republicans, amplifying the Biden campaign’s message in a more casual format. 

Parker Butler, the campaign’s director of digital rapid response, is the brains behind that account. As a Gen Z voice in the Democratic Party, he knows how to speak to young people, a crucial Biden demographic this election. 

I’ll be interested to see what Butler is up to through the election and beyond. You can follow him @parkerpbutler.

Jordan Klepper is a comedian and co-host of “The Daily Show” on Comedy Central. Tune in to “Inside with Jen Psaki” this Sunday at 12 p.m. ET for our conversation. 

What show are you bingeing right now? 

The NBA playoffs. Oddly enough, when I finish an episode and try to watch the next one I’m told to wait. Apparently the actors need to “recuperate.” Strange, but it builds suspense. Go Knicks.

What’s the last book you read? 

“In the Swarm” by Byung-Chul Han. A month’s worth of bold philosophical declarations on the digital age in a slight book you can fit in your pocket and impress whoever you sit next to at the coffee shop. “Oh this little thing? Yeah, let me tell you how politics is leisure and how freedom is illusory in the digital panopticon...” Drop that knowledge bomb, the patron leaves in a huff, and you’ve got the table all to yourself. Philosophy wins.

What time do you wake up on the weekends?

7 a.m. My child’s oatmeal does not make itself.

How do you take your coffee?

Black. If you can’t handle the bitter taste of coffee first thing in the morning then how the hell are you going to fare when the real world comes at you at 100 mph?