After a chaotic first presidential debate rife with unwarranted insults and incessant interruptions by President Donald Trump, the Joe Biden campaign should arrive at one conclusion: the final debate should be cancelled.
When run correctly, presidential debates give candidates the opportunity to challenge each other on policies and persuade voters. Instead, America watched the president, for an hour and a half, deride the democratic process and devolve the debate into partisan bickering.
While Biden benefited from the chaos, his modest polling gains do not outweigh enabling and publicizing Trump’s divisive rhetoric. The president is flailing, and the final debate will mirror the first in its pointlessness.
Early statistics already suggested marginal benefits for either candidate. Polling showed three-quarters of the electorate intended to watch the first debate. However, only 3 per cent expected to hear something that would impact their vote. Americans have made up their minds, which explains why Biden only rose 1.5 percentage points nationally despite Trump’s disastrous performance.
Even using the next debate to criticize Trump’s platform is useless, because neither he nor his Republican Party has one. Trump’s campaign website offers no insight into the next four years, and relies largely on his 2016 promises. Likewise, the Republican National Committee has done little else but release a one-page document pledging to “enthusiastically support the president’s America-first agenda” without citing any specifics.
Biden is clearly battling a candidate and a political party with no goals except to maintain power. The core component of presidential debates—the policies—is absent this election season.
Trump’s conduct also raises alarming concerns about his use of the federal debate podium. During the first debate, he dodged a request to denounce white supremacy. He also refused a commitment to a peaceful transfer of power.
Giving Trump extra opportunities to vocalize his unwillingness to accept election results is dangerous. It feeds a growing political polarization that is approaching a violent realm. Research from Politico showed one in three individuals identifying as Republicans and Democrats now believe violence can be justified to advance their party’s goals, a substantial increase from 2017.
Even worse, 26 per cent of Democrats who identify as “very liberal” believe there is a “great deal” of justification for violence if their nominee loses. For staunch Republicans, 16 per cent felt similar sentiments.
Our political leaders should admonish violent partisanship on any platform available. Biden acknowledged his acceptance of the voting results at the debate and emphasized law and order. Trump voiced his disdain for mail-in voting and called upon his supporters to intimidate voters by showing up as “poll watchers.”
One candidate is working to curb violent partisanship, and the other seeks to benefit from it.
Democrats might say cancelling the final debate would squander the former vice-president’s lead. However, statistics show Biden can benefit from a self-sabotaging president without televising his attacks on democracy. The winning strategy: to let the president lose against himself.
Much of the recent news surrounding the president proves this strategy’s effectiveness. Trump’s COVID-19 diagnosis has opened up the lead Biden has over the president, mainly due to popular belief that Trump could have avoided contracting coronavirus if he took the pandemic seriously.
Furthermore, 74 per cent of registered voters believe the Senate should prioritize passing a COVID-19 relief bill over confirming judges. In spite of this, Trump cancelled relief negotiations until after the election. The state of the economy and citizens’ financial well-being significantly alters any presidential race, and Trump has just thrown out his key pitch.
In short, Biden needs to let the president spiral. He should use town halls to convince undecided voters and refrain from being forced to antagonize Trump on a debate stage. Violence begets violence, and the former vice-president might be able to break the loop.
After four years of turmoil, the American people deserve debates that match the importance of the presidency and foster trust in democracy. Biden cannot legitimize the president’s disdain for both by giving him the stage again.
Featured graphic by Sara Mizannojehdehi.
