Tag: final 2020 presidential debate

An expert in nonverbal communication watched the Trump-Biden debate with the sound turned down – here’s what he saw

President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden met on Oct. 22 for the final debate in the 2020 election and, like the first debate, it was unusual.

COVID-19 forced social distancing and largely took the studio audience, with their laughter, cheering and booing out of the equation. 

What’s more, with norm-breaking interruptions and stealing of speaking time an inherent part of Donald Trump’s debate strategy, the contentious crosstalk between the two candidates and the moderator made long sections of the candidates’ first debate nearly impossible to hear or follow. The threat of having the microphone cut off effectively muted this aggression.

But is what they say as important as we think? Continue reading.

5 takeaways from the final 2020 presidential debate

Washington Post logo

After a mostly unwatchable first debate, then a canceled second one, we got a heated but relatively substantive final matchup between Joe Biden and President Trump on Thursday in Nashville.

Below, some takeaways.

1. Trump offers no course correction on coronavirus

For weeks now, perhaps the biggest question has been whether Trump, whose presidency is on the line as the clock ticks down toward Nov. 3, might actually try something different from what has earned him his current deficit in national polls. Continue reading.

Trump did what he came to do in Nashville, but Biden was ready for what came at him

Washington Post logo

With time running out and trailing in the polls, President Trump needed the strongest possible showing in his final debate against Joe Biden. But in the face of a series of attacks, the former vice president parried the president with a strong performance that is likely to leave the presidential campaign little changed from where it was at the start.

Trump arrived knowing that a repeat of the performance in the first debate would cost him and seemed determined to present a different face. Biden came in knowing that simply holding his own would amount to a victory.

Supporters of both candidates were cheered by what they saw during the 90 minutes at Belmont University in Nashville. But if, at worst, the debate was judged a draw, that alone would be less than the president needed politically. Continue reading.

Debate commission to mute Trump, Biden microphones during parts of Thursday debate

Washington Post logo

NOTE: This article is being provided free of charge to alll readers by The Washington Post.

The Commission on Presidential Debates said Monday night that it will mute Trump’s and Biden’s microphones during parts of Thursday’s presidential debate at Belmont University in Nashville.

The 90-minute debate will be broken up into six 15-minute segments, each with a different topic. The commission said it will give Trump and Biden two minutes apiece to speak uninterrupted at the start of each segment. A period of “open discussion” will follow until the next segment begins.

Trump’s campaign has repeatedly opposed the idea of granting the moderator the power to shut off a candidate’s microphone — an idea that has been floated in the aftermath of the first debate, during which Trump repeatedly interrupted and jeered at Biden. Continue reading.

Biden takes cautious approach ahead of second Trump debate

The Hill logo

Former Vice President Joe Biden is taking a cautious approach ahead of the final presidential debate against President Trump in what is expected to be one of the final turning points in the campaign.

Public polls show the Democratic nominee leading in the core battleground states and running away from the president in national surveys, although the Biden campaign has warned that the race is far closer than how it’s being characterized by the national media.

Under pressure to alter the course of the race, Trump will make two stops in Arizona on Monday, followed by trips to Pennsylvania and North Carolina ahead of Thursday’s debate.