 | By John Guida Politics Editor, Opinion |
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The final presidential debate was far less chaotic than the first, thanks in part to the threat of the mute button. As with past debates, we’ve collected reactions and analysis from 19 writers and columnists. Exclusively for readers of this newsletter, here’s what four of them thought mattered most. |
Biden has twice showed he isn’t senile, and the pandemic is getting worse. That’s probably all that matters. |
Neither candidate directly confronted the elephant in the room: Something is seriously wrong with American democracy. Specifically, the deliberative aspect of our democracy — that is, the part of civic life where we talk to one another in hopes of persuading opponents into becoming allies — has more or less collapsed and has been replaced by a sharply polarized, tense, rapidly escalating duel of alternate realities. Only Biden seemed troubled by this obvious, disturbing fact, which he gestured at in his closing speech by saying he hoped to be a president of all Americans, a source of swiftly crumbling common ground. |
Trump needed to show that he could make it through one of these things without looking like a bully. He made it half an hour or so before going hard at the Biden family, throwing around all manner of wild rumors, trying to throw Biden off his game. And despite the new mic-muting rule, the president kept trying to bulldoze the moderator Kristen Welker — who was having none of it and did a commendable job keeping things on track. This debate was more controlled than the first, but Trump still seemed jerky. |
This debate revealed a rather stunning thing about this race. Over the course of more than half a year, the president has never settled on a consistent line of attack — or even an insulting nickname — against Joe Biden. As a result, Biden’s approval rating has actually improved as the election has gone on. Trump is a sociopathic bully — but in this election, he has turned out to be a rather inept one. |
The illustrator Peter Arkle drew key moments of last night’s debate in real time. You can see some of the moments he captured on Instagram or Twitter. |
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Here’s what we’re focusing on today: |
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