Former White House press secretary Jen Psaki expressed doubts about the likelihood of debates between President Biden and former President Trump taking place. Speaking on "Pod Save America," Psaki highlighted her skepticism, suggesting that Trump might reject the terms proposed by Biden's team, leading to the collapse of the agreed-upon debates.
"Biden and Trump agreed to two debates recently—one on June 27 hosted by CNN and another on Sept. 10 hosted by ABC," Psaki revealed. She pointed out Biden's invocation of Trump's own words in offering debate terms: "As you said: anywhere, any time, any place." Trump, despite previously criticizing Biden's debating skills, concurred, deeming Biden "the worst debater I have ever faced" after their encounters during the 2020 campaign.
Psaki found the Biden team's strategy intriguing, particularly amid domestic confusion over anti-Israel student protests and international tensions surrounding the Israel-Palestine conflict. "It feels chaotic," she remarked, questioning Biden's inability to single-handedly diffuse such situations. Psaki suggested that Biden's unequivocal commitment to debates was crucial to dispelling narratives about his age, joking about the speculation during his March State of the Union address.
Commending the Biden team's approach, Psaki praised their proposal of debate rules, which included conducting debates in a TV studio with automatic microphones that cut off speakers when their time limit expired. She also delved into the reasoning behind the Biden campaign's decision to proactively challenge Trump to a debate. "I think internally they knew that at some point this was going to hit a head," Psaki commented, noting the strategic imperative to take the lead rather than merely reacting to Trump's maneuvers.
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