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Home Front: Politix

New York Times columnist: Biden should agree to debate Trump only if two conditions met

2020-07-09

They all know he's damaged goods that ain't getting better. "Hide him!"
[Wash Examiner] Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden should only agree to debate President Trump if two conditions are met , the New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman said.

"I worry about Joe Biden debating Donald Trump," Friedman wrote in his column on Tuesday. "He should do it only under two conditions. Otherwise, he's giving Trump unfair advantages."

"First, Biden should declare that he will take part in a debate only if Trump releases his tax returns for 2016 through 2018," Friedman said. Second, Biden "should insist that a real-time fact-checking team approved by both candidates be hired by the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates."

"Debates always have ground rules," Friedman wrote. "Why can't telling the truth and equal transparency on taxes be conditions for this one?"Trump's reelection campaign is reportedly pushing for four debates before the November general election. Biden's campaign has agreed to three debates. They are currently scheduled for September 29, October 15, and October 22.

"Our position is straightforward and clear: Joe Biden will accept the Commission's debates, on the Commission's dates, under the Commission's established format and the Commission's independent choice of moderators," Biden's campaign manager wrote in a letter to the Commission on Presidential Debates. "Donald Trump and Mike Pence should do the same. That is what every candidate for President and Vice President have done in modern times, Democrat and Republican alike."

The president, however, has attempted to paint the soon-to-be Democratic nominee as scared of going toe-to-toe with him on the debate stage.

"Now, he's already saying that he can't do debates because of COVID. Do you believe it? 'I can't do the debates because of COVID.' That was ‐ I just heard a little inkling of it two days ago. I said, 'Watch this one,'" Trump said during a Fox News town hall last month.

The University of Michigan, which was slated to host the October debate, announced on June 22 it would no longer host the event because of public health concerns.

"In consideration of the public health guidelines in our state as well as advice from our own experts ‐ we feel it is not feasible for us to safely host the presidential debate as planned," university president Mark Schlissel said in a statement.

Similarly, several pundits in conservative media and other critics of the former vice president have mocked him for "hiding in his basement" and not holding any in-person campaign events during the coronavirus pandemic.

Friedman praised Biden as a "role model" for staying inside his house during recent months as millions of people do the same to slow the spread of the virus.

"And with the coronavirus now spreading further, and Biden being a responsible individual and role model, it's likely that he won't be able to engage with any large groups of voters before Election Day. Therefore, the three scheduled televised debates, which will garner huge audiences, will carry more weight for him than ever," Friedman wrote. "Only if leading into the debate, American voters have a clear picture of Trump's tax returns alongside Biden's, and only if, coming out of the debate, they have a clear picture of who was telling the truth and who was not, will they be able to make a fair judgment between the two candidates."

Otherwise, the veteran journalist wrote, "Joe, stay in your basement."

Posted by:Frank G

#13 Trump should require Rush Limbaugh as the moderator for one of the "debates". Biden can keep his supporters, er, "journalists", for the other two.

Posted by: Rob Crawford 2020-07-09 17:37

#12 Yeah, and Trump should demand at least one live, in-depth debate lasting at least 3-4 hours with honest unbiased questioners and honest fact-checkers too.

In lieu of not being able to find honest questioners and fact checkers, have at least one 3-4 hour live debate and let it rip. Voters will sort it out for themselves.

Posted by: JohnQC 2020-07-09 13:57

#11 What do these people expect to find?

Nothing. They expect to find nothing. They expect to create a temporary, just before elections, public impression of quite a bit of something.

Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2020-07-09 12:51

#10 IRS has had Trump's tax returns all this time and never said boo. What do these people expect to find?

Posted by: Abu Uluque 2020-07-09 12:48

#9 Hiding works for Biden.
This is just a gambit to allow him to hide with a fig leaf of coverage. If Trump gives in they 'hope' they'll have something to bash him on, but knowing Trump I think he might have very clean tax records, in fact he might have even paid a bit more than required and is just waiting the right time to pounce.

Posted by: rjschwarz 2020-07-09 10:46

#8 Let's re-open the rape investigation against Biden.

Posted by: AlmostAnonymous5839 2020-07-09 10:12

#7 I think Hunters tax records would be much more interesting.

Posted by: CrazyFool 2020-07-09 09:16

#6 Trump’s two conditions must be for a Biden to 1) identify Hunter’s Ukraine Intelligence handler, 2) identify Hunter’s Chinese Intelligence handler.

Posted by: Jack Salami 2020-07-09 08:51

#5 Financial transparency? from Biden?? I thought Friedman couldn't sink any lower than his slimy groveling before the none too bright Emperor Xi. Perhaps proof that for the socialist there simply is no igneous level, they just keep going down.

Posted by: Cesare 2020-07-09 07:52

#4 lol, negotiating from a position of weakness, how's that working for you?

As well as negotiating against Trump, which means it ain't working well at all.

Posted by: Raj 2020-07-09 07:50

Perhaps Plugs could use Thamsanqa Jantjie style sign language during the debates and Soetoro could provide the audio translation ?

Posted by: Besoeker 2020-07-09 06:54

#2 lol, negotiating from a position of weakness, how's that working for you?

Posted by: Bob Grorong1136 2020-07-09 06:50

#1 I don't guess Trump should have any terms though , right?

Posted by: Chris 2020-07-09 01:05

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