The great 2020 election thread....

[Madner Kami]

I feel like he was rather unprepared for the sheer speed and volume of bullshit Trump was spewing.

To be fair, is anyone prepared for that really? I imagine talking with Trump and not being a head-nodding yes-(wo)man is immensly overwhelming, due him just drowning you in his disjointed cavalcades of bullshit and trying to shout you down, so that the only real two reactions you are left with is either to stand there and roll your eyes or respond in an equally unstatesman-like manner, resulting in a shouting match that drags you down just as much. Trump is a no-win scenario in every conceivable manner.

[Fuzzy Necromancer]

Honestly, as far back as the Democratic primaries, I was thinking that instead of politely pointing things out, moderates should just switch off a candidate's mic when they run out of time.

[Rocketboy1313]

Honestly, as far back as the Democratic primaries, I was thinking that instead of politely pointing things out, moderates should just switch off a candidate's mic when they run out of time.

One might make the argument that illustrating their ability to be thoughtful and considerate by not interrupting or being a clown is part of the debate.

[Madner Kami]

Honestly, as far back as the Democratic primaries, I was thinking that instead of politely pointing things out, moderates should just switch off a candidate's mic when they run out of time.

One might make the argument that illustrating their ability to be thoughtful and considerate by not interrupting or being a clown is part of the debate.

It was, once. Nowadays it's all about shouting the opposition down as fast and loud as you can. Works for both sides of the spectrum apparently.

[Captain Crimson]

The big issue with American politics, right now, is no more substance, if they ever had it at all. It's all become about making cheap soundbites that translate well into campaign fodder. A fully industrialized election process, folks! The impression I had, even as I was laughing the whole time, is they both blundered into each other's traps. This is who we want leading the free world? Someone strangle me now.

[Captain Crimson]

Here's my more articulated, long-winded breakdown of the debate.

Mr. Biden had a lot to prove, given all the nipping at his flanks in the months leading up to this. The needs of the challenger are always far different than the needs of the incumbent with their status of power, and power has its own effects. Mr. Biden needed to assert control without appearing scripted or forced, and I feel as if he handled that... fine, but Mr. 45 was interrupting so much that I suspect it served, to some degree, as the effective smokescreen for the media to, as I predict, play damage control later, and keep on shielding him. Because come on, there is a double standard here past the initial understandable disdain one would feel for Mr. 45, in that it affects the news reporting. When even other countries are calling it out, it's bad.

I facepalmed when Mr. 45 said we're gonna see election fraud like never before, yet I did the same thing when Mr. Biden called him, without hyperbole, the worst president ever, like, really. That both sides can agree it was a disaster is a very damning testament to how much was lost, when both sides had everything to gain, yet I can't help but see a slight edge going to Mr. 45 and the GOP.

I feel as if everyone is used to Mr. 45 at this point, so his skullduggery is nothing new. But Mr. Biden, despite serving as Mr. 44's VP for eight years now, is a relative unknown, and make no mistake, that's by design, as I feel the DNC is hoping being the anti-Trump will carry them to the White House, since similarly to Mr. Sanders, they really have never known what to DO with Mr. Biden. Mr. Biden needed to prove he was presidential, and he fumbled it, as we all knew he would. Again, most mainstay voters don't know who Mr. Biden is, at least without doing more research that time and labor discourage in today's hyper-paced world. But for those dedicated researchers, there's not a lot to inspire here, and Mr. 45 merely needs to scare everyone while Mr. Biden needs to inspire everyone, and it's where you get that old adage, "Democrats fall in love, republicans fall into line." Mr. 45 excels at terror tactics while Mr. Biden couldn't inspire a baby robin back into its nest.

I can understand if the DNC didn't want a rogue like Mr. Sanders to be their flag-bearer, I really do. But frankly, that time was 2017, not 2020. Didn't cover Ms. Reade's allegations for weeks, and it's very much favoritism to Mr. Biden. So that in effect, it could come off that the DNC was stringing along all the younger progressives who made up his core following. Will it affect voter turnout this year? I think that is slightly offset by Mr. Sanders going around stumping for Mr. Biden with more fervor than he did 2016, which come on, he was always going to eagerly jump aboard the bandwagon to support a white guy more passionately than a woman, so I could see that coming a mile off. But I'm a bit uncertain, given the volume of disdain a lot of these younger progressives and SJWs hold for Mr. Biden, approaching, on par with, or surpassing the same sentiments they hold for Mr. 45.

My takeaway here is that Mr. 45 is in a much stronger position heading into November, even more than he was in previous months, as whatever you may think of him personally, and he is definitely a crass, vulgar, possibly criminal tycoon, at the same time his administration has been quintessentially republican, and it's why, IMO at least, his base is fired up more. Partisan lines show the disconnect, as the GOP has more enthusiasm for their candidate, which is tragic, while the DNC is facing, as I see it, a massive generational issue that's just getting worse over time and really don't know what they want past "we have to beat Trump!" That only takes you so far and doesn't address the serious, underlying problems we're facing. Historically Mr. 45 has a lot more going for him if you analyze recent trends, and this seems all too similar to 1968, 1984, and 2004... even 2016.

I don't think the attempt to make Biden Republicans was ever going to work, as the DNC no doubt hoped it would. Simply for the reason that all those qualities that might attract conservatives to him in enough numbers to overcome low voter turnout, is why that due to the progressives composing his inner circle, there's no way said conservatives would vote for him. Ms. Harris has no broader election appeal, and Mr. Biden fell into the same trap that Ms. Clinton did. He's already got California and the black voted locked up now, so there was nothing gained there. Swing voters, independents, will likely either not show up to vote or vote Mr. 45, yet again. Progressives, feminists, and civil rights activists feel a lot shakier here given Mr. Biden's past on segregation, the Reade accusations, and a host of other issues while Mr. 45's base can overlook it if they feel they can yield greater results.

I'd give it this a stamp of 60-40 in favor of Mr 45, but that's just my takeaway. If Mr. Biden wins, make no mistake, it's due to media favoritism and the typical political machinations some people are naive enough to think the DNC is above.

[Rocketboy1313]

It was, once. Nowadays it's all about shouting the opposition down as fast and loud as you can. Works for both sides of the spectrum apparently.

"both sides"

[Madner Kami]

It was, once. Nowadays it's all about shouting the opposition down as fast and loud as you can. Works for both sides of the spectrum apparently.

"both sides"

Elaborate, please.

[clearspira]

It was, once. Nowadays it's all about shouting the opposition down as fast and loud as you can. Works for both sides of the spectrum apparently.

"both sides"

Are you implying that the left is by default more civil and respectful? I got a couple of memes I can throw your way if you do.

[J!!]

See my previous point:

Biden, I feel like did as well as can be reasonably expected, given that he only had two bad options: Patiently let Trump gish-gallop until his turn, and then try to get through his rebuttals while trump interrupts like a toddler every two seconds, or interrupt right back. The former making him look weak, and the later feeding into a false-equivalency narrative that appeals to people too cognitively lazy too actually examine 'both sides' and see the obvious, glaring differences.