“I hope I don’t get baited into a brawl with this guy, because that’s the only place he’s comfortable,” / “So, it’s important for Biden to respond to Trump without losing his cool, and smile while he surgically cuts the president down to size.”

 

Tom McCarthy has a scene-setter for tonight’s debate, with a view on the tactics the two candidates might employ.

 

“Trump will go after Biden hard, to deflect attention away from his own troubles, including the reports on his tax evasion and business failures,” said Brad Bannon, a Washington-based Democratic strategist. “Much of Biden’s support is based on his calm demeanor, which contrasts well with the president’s erratic personality.

 

“So, it’s important for Biden to respond to Trump without losing his cool, and smile while he surgically cuts the president down to size.”

 

Advisers to Biden, meanwhile, say that a great debate result for the Democratic candidate would be for not much to happen at all. The challenge as they see it is for Biden to appear steady and draw a contrast with Trump – and to resist being drawn into a mudfight.

 

Biden himself appears to recognize the dangers of meeting Trump on his preferred turf of insult and mockery.

 

“I hope I don’t get baited into a brawl with this guy, because that’s the only place he’s comfortable,” Biden told donors at a fundraiser in Delaware earlier this month. “This is a guy who is absolutely tasteless. Completely tasteless. So pointing it out doesn’t do much.”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/sep/29/donald-trump-joe-biden-presidential-debate-cleveland