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Top Democrat donors turn on Biden
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Major Democrat party donors have turned on Joe Biden following his disastrous performance in the first US presidential debate, with one adviser saying the only options now were that he “bows out or dies”.
Donors have urged Mr Biden to step aside, suggesting California’s Gavin Newsom and Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer as potential replacements amid rising panic about the future of the campaign.
Mr Biden repeatedly struggled to express himself during the debate with Donald Trump, producing rambling and incoherent answers.
The high-profile Democrat donor, Mark Buell, raised the possibility of replacing Mr Biden following the debate, saying: “Do we have time to put somebody else in there?”
One adviser to major Democratic Party donors told Politico: “Our only hope is that he bows out, we have a brokered convention, or dies”.
Strategists working for at least three separate Democrats said they have received texts from party donors asking them if their candidate would step forward to replace Biden as the presidential nominee.
“Biden needs to drop out. No question about it,” one said, proposing a ticket led by Ms Whitmer and Wes Moore, the governor of Maryland.
“This is terrible. Worse than I thought was possible. Everyone I’m speaking with thinks Biden should drop out,” one Democrat donor told NBC News.
One adviser told Politico that they had “taken no less than half a dozen key donors texting ‘disaster’ and [the] party needs to do something.”
Follow our afternoon coverage of the debate fallout here.
Thanks for following our live coverage. Here’s a roundup of the day’s events so far:
- Top Democrat donors turn on Biden after his debate performance
- The president declares the debate ‘went well’
- Democrats enter panic mode as suggestions grow that Mr Biden could be replaced
- New York Post declares the debate ‘Just sad’ on a front page headline
- Mr Biden accuses Trump of having ‘morals of an alley cat’ during the clash
Our live coverage is now moving to a new blog here.
Trump shows off his swing after golf squabble with Biden
Donald Trump took to the internet to show off his swing after squabbling with Joe Biden over who was better at golf during in the midst of their heated head-to-head on CNN last night.
The argument broke out after questions were raised concerning the fitness of both candidates, who have a combined age of 159. Trump claimed to have won two golf club championships, which led Mr Biden to suggest a driving contest. They then argued over their handicaps before conceding they were acting like “children”.
Just hours after the debate wrapped up, Trump posted on his own social media platform, Truth Social, a montage of some of his golfing highlights and top shots of him action.
Read more about their bicker over golf here.
The morning after the night before in Atlanta
Joe Biden is known to care deeply about the views of the liberal opinion-formers, and this morning the newspapers are full of dire headlines about his debate performance.
It is 7.30am here, and The New York Times — the in-house journal of a Democratic White House — is running four comment pieces today about Mr Biden’s age.
“Biden cannot go on like this,” reads the headline of one. “I don’t think Biden should be running,” says another.
“President Biden, it’s time to drop out,” writes a third, while Thomas Friedman, a Biden administration confidante, delivers the fatal blow.
“Joe Biden is a good man and a good president,” the headline reads. “He must drop out of the race.”
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The world reacts to the US election debate
The world tuned in to Thursday’s US presidential debate and collectively cringed at what unfolded. Foreign officials and diplomats have since voiced their disappointment and even alarm at Joe Biden’s performance.
Kunihiko Miyake, a former Japanese diplomat, said that Mr Trump “didn’t win” the debate, but that Mr Biden “may have imploded” and the world must now be “much more prepared” for the possibility of Mr Trump returning to the White House.
A Western diplomat described the debate to Politico as a “turning point” in the future of Mr Biden’s election campaign.
A senior German official, Michael Link, urged the Democrats on Friday to replace Joe Biden within just a few weeks.
In Sydney, several Australian officials and experts attended a workshop titled “Trump 2.0” while the debate aired. “The overwhelming feeling from today is that it was a disaster for Biden,” said Peter Dean, a professor at the United States Studies Centre in Sydney, adding the “smart play” is to prepare for Trump’s return to office.
Read more here.
Jill Biden: ‘I’m so proud of Joe’
First Lady Jill Biden declared she was “so proud” of her husband as she urged US citizens to vote for “the president you deserve” following what has been widely described as a disastrous election debate for the Democrats.
“Together, we can finish the job for the American people,” she said.
Following the debate last night, Mrs Biden lavished the president with praise, stating: “Joe, you did such a good job. You answered every question, you knew all the facts.”
She then shouted: “Let me ask the crowd - what did Trump do? Lie!”
Read more about her reaction here.
Democrats might ask Obama to get Biden to stand down
The Democrats may be plotting to remove Joe Biden with the help of former president Barack Obama.
“I’m on a lot of chains of people gaming out how Biden withdraws. Need open convention,” a former senior Obama official told Politico.
“He has to go. Who are the grandees who could tell Biden to go? [Barack] Obama? [Bill] Clinton? [Al] Gore? [Nancy] Pelosi? [Jim] Clyburn?”
A Democratic operative also told the outlet: “I think there are short lists being made,” in reference to Mr Biden’s possible replacement.
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Biden’s debate performance ‘worse than anyone can believe’, says Farage
Nigel Farage declared Joe Biden’s US presidential election debate performance “worse than anyone can believe”.
The Reform leader told The Sun that the president is “totally unfit for office.”
Despite the criticism, Biden has claimed he “did well” in the debate with Donald Trump.
Sir Keir Starmer declined to comment on the outcome of the debate on BBC radio on Friday.
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How can the Democrats oust Biden?
Joe Biden’s disastrous performance in the first presidential debate has sparked panic among Democrats, with senior party leaders casting around for the best way to replace him as the party’s nominee, writes Rachel Slater.
It is not possible at this stage for Democrats to compel Mr Biden to stand aside.
The US president can only be replaced if he chooses to exit the race himself.
But how might that happen and who could replace him?
Read more here.
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Kremlin has ‘no comment’ on election debate
Moscow said is has no comment on the dramatic and, at times, farcical US presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump.
In a rare show of restraint, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to discuss the event, calling it an internal US matter.
When asked if Vladimir Putin tuned in, Mr Peskov said: “Well, look, I don’t think you expect the president of Russia might set an alarm clock, wake up before morning and watch the debates in the United States of America?”
The Kremlin’s silence comes in the face of a heated exchange over Ukraine between the two presidential candidates that saw Mr Biden call Putin a “war criminal” and Trump declare that he will “settle” the war himself.
Putin earlier this month said he did not believe the outcome of the election would make much difference for Russia.
German official urges Democrats to replace Biden
A senior German official who coordinates cooperation with the US urged Democrats on Friday to replace Joe Biden as presidential candidate after his faltering TV debate with Donald Trump.
“Whether the Democrats will really go into the election in November with Joe Biden must be decided by the Democrats at their party conference in mid-August,” Michael Link, the German government’s pointman for transatlantic relations, told the Tagesspiegel newspaper.
He said Mr Biden was unclear, difficult to understand and failed to get his message across during the 90-minute showdown.
“The Democrats must consider who is best placed to prevent Trump from returning to office using his usual methods - allegations, insults, distortions, outright lies,” Link said.
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Poll: 67 per cent debate watchers say Trump won
US voters who watched the fiery presidential election debate last night largely said Donald Trump outperformed Joe Biden, according to a CNN flash poll.
Most participants said they had no real confidence in Biden’s ability to win the election.
At least 67 per cent say Trump won, while prior to the debate, 55 per cent of the same group had predicted that the former president would perform better than Mr Biden.
In 2020, debate watchers widely agreed that Mr Biden outperformed his rival in both of their presidential debates.
‘This cannot be real life’
Jon Stewart, host of The Daily Show, led a scathing assessment of Joe Biden and Donald Trump’s head-to-head last night, stating in disbelief: “This cannot be real life.”
“Let me just say after watching tonight’s debate, both of these men should be using performance-enhancing drugs,” Mr Stewart joked.
“While Biden was preparing at Camp David – for a week! – did anyone mention he would also be on camera,” he added.
Biden declares disastrous debate went ‘well’
US president Joe Biden has professed that he “did well” following his debate with Donald Trump despite a growing chorus of Democrats calling for the 81-year-old to abandon his re-election campaign over his performance.
Mr Biden chose to ignore the wide criticism for his shaky, fumbled performance and instead told reporters: “I think we did well,” as he visited a Waffle House for a post-debate meal .
The first debate of the 2024 US election campaign saw Mr Biden repeatedly struggled to express himself, mumble through rambling answers and declare his rival a “loser”.
As he froze under the spotlight, Mr Trump was able to claim the night, despite struggling to land key points and consistently delivering half-truths.
A group of Democrat congressmen were said to now be discussing the need to find a new presidential nominee after watching the “disaster” unfold, The New York Times reports.
John King, CNN’s chief national correspondent, said moments after the debate ended: “Right now as we speak there is a deep, a wide, very aggressive panic in the Democratic party.”
Democrats at ‘Defcon One’ as they call on Biden to step down
Democrats reached “Defcon One” on Thursday night, calling on Joe Biden to step aside after his disastrous debate performance, writes Tony Diver.
Strategists and elected politicians are now openly considering replacing the US president as the Democratic nominee at this year’s convention, after fears about his mental capacity were realised during his head-to-head with Donald Trump.
Mr Biden gave a stuttering and incoherent performance at the debate, hosted by CNN in Atlanta, as he struggled to respond to questions about policy and often trailed off mid-sentence.
David Plouffe, who managed Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign, told the network: “It’s kind of a ‘Defcon One’ moment”.
Read the full article here.
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Biden should ‘stand aside’, says ex UK ambassador to US
President Joe Biden should “stand aside” from the presidential race, Kim Darroch, former British ambassador to the US from 2016 to 2019, said in the fallout of last night’s debate.
“This was an astonishingly bad performance,” the ex diplomat told The Sun. “He was inaudible, he lost his train of thought - some of his answers made no sense”.
Trump says he will ‘settle war in Ukraine’, Biden calls Putin a ‘war criminal’
The two US presidential candidates clashed over Ukraine, both vying to prove who was tougher on foreign policy.
Donald Trump went on the offensive, telling President Joe Biden he will “have that war settled” before “I take office on 20 January”.
The former president also argued that Russia would have never invaded Ukraine if there was a “real president” in office.
Mr Biden hit back, stating Trump had “no idea”. He called Vladimir Putin a “war criminal” who “wants all of Ukraine” and would not stop at Kyiv.
“Go ahead, let Putin go in and control Ukraine, and then move on to Poland and other places. See what happens then. He has no idea what the hell he’s talking about,” he added.
Biden brushes off concerns
President Joe Biden told reporters that he thought he performed well, brushing off concerns about a debate performance that has been described as “disastrous”.
“I think we did well,” Mr Biden said while visiting a Waffle House.
He went on to attack former President Donald Trump when questioned about calls for him to drop out of the race.
Mr Biden added that he had a sore throat, according to the print pool.
Jill Biden congratulates her husband
First Lay Jill Biden congratulated her husband after what has been largely called a disastrous performance.
Mrs Biden said: “Joe, you did such a good job. You answered every question, you knew all the facts. Let me ask the crowd - what did Trump do? Lie.”
She was met by cheers from the crowd.
Key moments: a blow-by-blow of the debate
If you’re just joining us, here are a few of the standout moments of the debate:
Entrance on stage
The warning signs for Joe Biden’s performance were there from early in the night. “Folks, how are you?” he said, in a voice that was close to a mumble when he walked on the stage. He was barely audible as he added, hoarsely: “Great to be here, thank you.”
Medicare
Mr Biden’s worst moment in the debate was a rambling answer about the national debt, in which he repeatedly stumbled over his words before halting altogether. He twice confused millions and billions, mixed up a 24 and 25 per cent rate of tax, then lost his train of thought completely.
‘I don’t know what he said’
As Mr Biden came to the end of a meandering answer about border security, Donald Trump went on the attack. “I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence,” he said. “I don’t think he knows what he said either.”
Golf
Mr Biden and Mr Trump were both asked about how they would handle the presidency given their ages. The pair instead started arguing about golf. Trump said Mr Biden “can’t hit a ball 50 yards”, prompting the Democrat to say he had a handicap of six during his time as vice president.
‘Losers and suckers’
Mr Biden appeared furious as he attacked Mr Trump for allegedly referring to members of the military as “losers” and “suckers”.
Gavin Newsom ‘centre of attention’ after Biden performance
Gavin Newsom was the centre of attention in the spin room in Atlanta as the Democrats reeled from Joe Biden’s disastrous performance.
A picture of the 56-year-old governor of California surrounded by dozens of journalists will give a sliver of hope to the Democrats.
While he fought the good fight on behalf of Mr Biden, Mr Newsom has long been considered one of the front runners to step into the breach if the president is persuaded to step aside.
A successful businessman who founded the boutique PlumpJack Group winery, Mr Newsom is charismatic.
Even though Mr Biden has been the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate, Mr Newsom has spent months raising his national profile in particular by taking on Florida governor Ron DeSantis in what many thought could be a dress rehearsal for the 2028 campaign.
But while Mr Newsom could energise Democrats, his record in California has been controversial with critics attacking the state’s high taxes and accusing him of being the personification of “woke”.
In an election which will in part be fought on culture wars, Mr Newsom’s liberal credentials could provide an easy line of attack for the Trump camp.
Were he to run, there would be the additional irony that Mr Newsom’s former wife, Kimberley Guilfoyle, is now the engaged to Donald Trump Jr.
‘Ear-to-ear grins’ from the Trump campaign
The Trump campaign team members have identical grins stretching from ear to ear in the spin room in Atlanta.
Jason Miller, a senior adviser who was closely involved in preparing Trump for tonight’s showdown, said the former president “did it his way”.
“I thought it was the greatest debate performance in American history,” he said.
“We knew that as long as we got a fair shake with this debate, he would get his message out, and that’s exactly what happened,” he added.
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“It couldn’t have gone better for President Trump and our campaign,” said Brian Hughes, a campaign spokesman.
“I don’t think the Biden campaign is going to be very interested in doing more debates after tonight.”
Mr Hughes added Trump had been “respectful” of a debate format they feared would be “very lopsided” in Mr Biden’s favour.
Kamala Harris: Biden had a ‘slow start’
Kamala Harris, the US vice president, acknowledged it was a “slow start” from Joe Biden at this evening’s debate, as she tried to shut down the narrative that he was not fit for the job.
Ms Harris was asked by CNN’s Anderson Cooper whether he was a “very different person” than he was in 2020, when she debated him for the Democratic nomination.
“I’m not going to spend all night with you talking about the last 90 minutes when I’ve been watching the last three and a half years of performance,” she said.
Mr Cooper replied: “Can you say that you are not concerned at all having watched the president’s performance tonight?”
“It was a slow start,” she replied. “That’s obvious to everyone. I’m not going to debate that point. I’m talking about the choice in November, about one of the most important elections in our collective lifetime.”
CNN snap poll; Two-thirds say Trump won
A snap poll on the debate taken by CNN found that two thirds believe Donald Trump won it, compared with a third who said Joe Biden.
The survey was taken of people who watched the debate. The sample had a small majority of Republicans.
Prior to the event, the same group was asked who they thought would win. Fifty-five per cent said Trump, compared with 45 per cent for Mr Biden.
‘Few Democrats defending Biden in spin room’
The interesting thing about the post-debate spin room tonight is how few Democrats are around defending Joe Biden.
So far I have counted four, including Gov Gavin Newsom and Sen Raphael Warnock. They were sent out one at a time, and each of them drew a significant crowd of reporters.
By contrast, I’ve seen at least ten Republicans and members of the Trump campaign wandering around. The pressure tonight is really on Joe Biden’s team to explain how they can come back from that — and it seems not many people fancy that job.
‘They can’t spin this debate performance’
Maeve Reston, who covered the debate for the Washington Post, was withering.
“The first few minutes of the debate were brutal for Biden, and though he got sharper at certain moments as the debate went on, it’s hard to see how he assuaged those concerns tonight.
“I’m baffled by why Democrats pushed so hard for this debate. It’s hard to imagine that they’ll want him to do another one.”
Kayleigh McEnany, who served as Trump’s press secretary in the White House rejoiced at the discomfort in the Biden camp.
“Watching the universal panic among Democrats across every platform is quite something,” she wrote on X.
“There is no way Joe Biden remains the nominee. They can’t even spin this.”
Biden urged to drop out for former primary challenger
One Democrat, David Skadron, called for the party to drop Mr Biden and replace him with Dean Phillips, who challenged the president fore the Democratic nomination.
“Dean Philips has been saying for months that this is unacceptable.
“Joe Biden should be swapped out with Dean Phillips, the only Democrat that had the courage to say the quiet part out loud.”
On CNN, veteran broadcaster Chris Wallace said Mr Biden had “sunk his campaign tonight.”
New York Times columnist, Nicholas Kristof, added: “I wish Biden would reflect on this debate performance and then announce his decision to withdraw from the race, throwing the choice of Democratic nominee to the convention.”
He suggested Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer, Ohio senator Sherrod Brown or commerce secretary Gina Raimondo as alternatives.
‘A disappointing performance for Joe Biden’
Joe Biden’s allies could not hide their disappointment at his performance and the US media was savage in its assessment of how he fared on the debate stage.
Kate Bedingfield, his former communications director, said “It was a really disappointing performance from Joe Biden.
David Axelrod, a former Obama strategist told CNN there would be discussions on whether he should continue.
Andrew Yang, who ran for the Democratic nomination in 2020, was blunt in his assessment.
Writing under the hashtag #swapJoeout on X, he said: “Look I debated Joe 7 times in 2020. He’s a different guy in 2024.”
Trump ‘is running from the jailhouse’
Raphael Warnock, the Democrat senator, is in the spin room trying to mitigate the damage from tonight’s debate.
He accused the media of being too focussed on Mr Biden’s style, and attacked Trump for his legal issues.
“He’s not running for the White House,” he said. “He’s running from the jailhouse.”
Trump ‘failed to say he would accept election results’
A statement put out after the debate by Jen O’Malley Dillon, a senior figure in the Biden campaign, devotes twice as much space to attacking Donald Trump to praising Joe Biden. It reads:
Tonight, President Biden presented a positive and winning vision for the future of America – one in which every American has a fair shot at the American dream, where every one of our rights are protected, and where our president fights to strengthen our democracy – not to tear it down.
On the other side of the stage was Donald Trump, who offered a dark and backwards window into what America will look like if he steps foot back in the White House: a country where women are forced to beg for the health care they need to stay alive.
A country that puts the interests of billionaires over working people.
And a former president who not once, not twice, but three times, failed to promise he would accept the results of a free and fair election this November.
Trump’s performance tonight reminded the American people why they fired him four years ago, and reinforced just how high the stakes are this November for the future of our country.
Obama adviser: Biden seemed ‘disoriented’
David Axelrod, a former senior adviser to Barack Obama, said there will be “discussions” in the Democratic party about whether he should step aside.
“We said at the beginning that each person had a fundamental goal, and for Biden that was to appear energetic, engaged,” he said on CNN.
“I actually think he scored a bunch of points... on issues like abortion for example, on some of the economic issues
“I think there was a sense of shock at how he came out at the beginning of this debate, he seemed a little disoriented... there are going to be discussions about whether he should continue.”
‘The country doesn’t respect you,’ Trump tells Biden
Joe Biden repeatedly stumbles over his words in his closing statement, which he devoted largely to talking about drug prices and the tax system.
Donald Trump addresses Joe Biden in his closing statement.
“The whole country is exploding because of you because they don’t respect you and they have to respect the president, and they don’t respect you throughout the world,” he says.
Bemusement after candidates clash over golf
There were a lot of things we expected to see tonight. Two presidential candidates brawling over which is better at golf was not one of them.
The debate took a bizarre turn when Donald Trump used an answer on his mental and physical fitness to brag about his skill on the golf course.
Joe Biden was laughing through much of the rambling answer. Given his turn, he said: “Just look at what he says he is” and compare it to “what he is”.
Mr Biden then went on to talk up his own golfing skills, telling Trump he was “happy” to play against him “if you carry your own bag”.
At the end of the segment there was bemusement in the press room. “What is this?” one journalist wondered aloud.
White House: Biden has a cold
Joe Biden developed a cold while preparing for the presidential debate at Camp David, the White House has said.
It appears to be an explanation put out by officials in the Biden administration - while the debate is still underway - for the US President’s hoarse voice and frequent coughs.
Trump and Biden bicker about golf handicap
Donald Trump is asked the same question about his age. “We knock on wood wherever we may have wood that I’m in very good health,” he says.
The two candidates then got into a slanging match about golf - apparently prompted by the fact that Trump claimed to have challenged Joe Biden to a match.
Mr Biden claims he had a six handicap and would play Trump if he carried his own bag. Trump said his handicap claim was the “biggest lie”, prompting more bickering.
“Let’s not act like children,” Trump says eventually. “You are a child,” Mr Biden answers.
Trump ‘is three years younger and a lot less competent’
Joe Biden is questioned about his age, with moderators noting he will be 86 years old if he serves out a second presidential term.
Mr Biden, who has struggled to articulate himself throughout the debate, said: “I’ve spent half my career being criticised being the youngest person in politics.”
Referring to Donald Trump, he says: “This guy’s three years longer, he’s a lot less competent.”
Trump and Biden blame each other for ‘largest deficit in history’
Joe Biden and Donald Trump are accusing each other of running up the “largest deficit” in the history of the US.
Trump then claims that China is “killing us as a country”, before labelling Mr Biden a “Manchurian candidate - he gets money from China, so I think he’s afraid to deal with them or something”.
‘Afghanistan withdrawal was the most embarrassing moment in our history’
Donald Trump claims he has never seen Joe Biden sack someone. “I fired a lot of top people,” he says - apparently invoking his catchphrase from The Apprentice, the reality show that he hosted for 14 series before running for the presidency.
He then hammers Joe Biden on the Afghanistan withdrawal.
“He should have fired every military man that was involved with that Afghan Afghanistan horror show - the most embarrassing moment in the history of our country,” he says.
Illegal immigrants destroying social security, claims Trump
Asked how he would keep social security solvent, Joe Biden answers: “Make the very wealthy began to pay their fair share.”
He claims Donald Trump “wants to get rid of social security”, adding: “The American public has greater health care coverage than ever before”. Trump smiles slightly and laughs, avoiding looking at the Democrat.
Mr Biden then once again circles back to what he has delivered for the black community.
Trump answers: “Social security - he’s destroying it because millions of people are pouring into our country and they’re putting them onto social security.”
Biden: Trump ‘didn’t do a damn thing’ for the environment
Questioned about how he would tackle the climate crisis, Donald Trump turns to an answer he gave at his first debate with Joe Biden in 2020.
“I want absolutely immaculate clean water, and I want absolutely clean air,” he says.
“I don’t know where the hell he’s been, the idea that anything he says is true. I passed the most extensive climate change legislation in history,” Mr Biden responds.
He then veers into a question about “black universities and colleges”, before claiming Trump “didn’t do a damn thing” for the environment.
Migrants are ‘taking black jobs’, claims Trump
Donald Trump pivots from a question on the economy back to what is becoming a favourite topic - the border.
“They’re taking black jobs and they’re taking Hispanic jobs,” he says of illegal migrants. “You haven’t seen it yet, but you’re gonna see something that’s going to be the worst in our history.”
Joe Biden returns to the original question, saying there was no inflation when he took office “because the economy was flat on its back”.
Half time verdict: Trump is wiping the floor with Biden
There is no question that Donald Trump is winning this debate. He has remained calm and focussed on some policy issues that are designed to appeal to moderate voters -- abortion pills and negotiating with Vladimir Putin.
At times, some of the old Trump campaign style has shone through, when he talked about a story that “everyone has debunked” or rambled about his supporters.
But all of that has been eclipsed by Joe Biden’s performance. The US president seems feeble and confused, and it is often hard to make out what he is saying.
Laughter as Trump denies porn star affair
We expected Donald Trump to be the one to make this debate personal. But the former president has appeared calm and in control for the first half of this debate.
In fact, it’s Joe Biden who’s been slinging the most mud tonight. After calling his rival a “convicted felon”, and a “criminal”, he lists all the things he says Trump has done wrong.
He rounds off the list by saying Trump “had sex with a porn star” while his wife Melania was pregnant. He turned to him and said: “You have the morals of an alley cat”.
“I didn’t have sex with a porn star,” comes the reply from Trump, prompting laughter backstage in the media room.
Trump, usually a master communicator, has forgotten a golden rule: never repeat the premise of the accusation in your response.
‘A convicted felon with the morals of an alley cat’
Biden has just called Donald Trump a “convicted felon”. That line was always expected to come up, and Mr Biden has used it halfway through the debate. It was a well-delivered answer that put Trump on the back foot.
Trump shrugged on camera, as if he was expecting to be called that, and launched into a pre-prepared response.
“My retribution is going to be success,” he said. “We are going to make this nation successful again because right now, it’s a failing nation. But when he talks about a convicted felon, his son is a convicted felon at a very high level.” He went on to accuse Mr Biden of being a “criminal” and suggesting he could go to prison after leaving office.
Mr Biden asked the moderators to respond directly, and listed a series of accusations against Trump, including that he “had sex with a porn star” and “molested a woman”. “You have the morals of an alley cat,” he said.
Trump responds: “I didn’t have sex with a porn star.”
Biden not equipped to be president, claims Trump
Joe Biden launched a fusillade of personal attacks on Donald Trump, claiming the Republican has “no sense of American democracy” and that he “didn’t deserve to be president”.
Trump responds in kind. “He’s not equipped to be president. You know it and I know it, it’s ridiculous.
“We’re trying to justify his presidency - his presidency is, without question, the worst presidency in the history of our country. We shouldn’t be having a debate about it, there’s nothing to debate.”
Biden: Trump had sex with a porn star when his wife was pregnant
The debate’s tone has become vicious, with Joe Biden telling Donald Trump he has the “morals of an alley cat” and claiming he had “sex with a porn star” - referring to Stormy Daniels - while his wife was pregnant.
“I didn’t have sex with a porn star,” Trump responds.
![Trump responds to Joe Biden's taunt about being a felon by mentioning Hunter Biden's conviction](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/28/TELEMMGLPICT000383646121_17195394369520_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqNJjoeBT78QIaYdkJdEY4CnGTJFJS74MYhNY6w3GNbO8.jpeg?imwidth=350)
Biden: Trump is a convicted felon
Joe Biden labels Donald Trump a “convicted felon” in a question on the Jan 6 riots.
“The only person in this stage who is a convicted felon is the man I’m looking at right now,” he says. “And the fact of the matter is, what he’s telling you is simply not true.”
Trump hits back by referencing Hunter Biden, saying of his opponent: “His son is a convicted felon”.
He then suggests Mr Biden may be a “convicted felon” for his border policies - something the Democrat says is “outrageous and “simply a lie”.
Did Biden over-prepare for the debate?
It feels like Joe Biden’s seven days of debate preparation may not have helped him in this debate.
In each response he gives, he uses several specific examples of things that Trump has done, but he can’t remember the details and is frequently having to repeat himself and return to the point.
Trump, meanwhile, is speaking uncharacteristically fluently. He has resisted the temptation to tell the rambling stories he uses on the campaign trial, and is addressing the points put to him.
Added to that is the odd insult. “He’s become like a Palestinian,” he said of Mr Biden just now in answer to a question on the Middle East.”But they don’t like him because he’s a very bad Palestinian. He’s a weak one.”
Trump: Nato spent billions more on defence because of me
Accused by Joe Biden of wanting to pull out of Nato, Donald Trump says he had been critical of defence spending by Nato allies during his time in office.
“I’m not going to support Nato if you don’t pay,” he said he told Nato countries. “And you know what happened - billions and billions of dollars came flowing in the next day.”
Scathing response to Biden performance on social media
The early responses on social media have not been encouraging for Joe Biden, after a halting start to the debate.
Serg, a former marine and union member, was particularly scathing on X, formerly Twitter.
“So far watching this presidential debate it sounds like Biden has been taking voice lessons from RFK Jr and meditation classes from Mitch McConnell. Trump seems to be crushing it.”
Others are already voicing their despair at the choice American voters have been offered.
Jessie Barrett expressed a view shared by many on X, albeit more forcefully than most.
“Good lord PLEEEEEASE get us two new presidential candidates and not these two bozos that are on TV tonight.”
Trump: Democrats are the radicals on abortion
There was a key line there from Donald Trump on abortion: “We think the Democrats are the radicals, not the Republicans.”
That is an interesting response from Trump on an issue that he is historically vulnerable. The polls show that even the conservative public is out of sync with Republicans on this issue.
Mr Biden launched into an attack on this issue, accusing Trump of being an extremist. In his response, he said he would not restrict access to abortion pills -- one of the key policy issues -- and claimed Mr Biden supported aborting babies “after birth”. It feels to me that he successfully flipped that hostile topic back on his opponent.
Biden watching Trump closely as he answers
In the presidential debates of 2020, Joe Biden generally avoided looking at Donald Trump and would speak directly to the camera. Tonight, he often looks over at his Republican rival.
![Joe Biden speaks at the presidential debate in Atlanta, Georgia](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/28/TELEMMGLPICT000383644177_17195379500070_trans_NvBQzQNjv4Bqq26TX-rkvwwXA2f8oBGFwkZd6X9EDsON1MlQyu9Yxvg.jpeg?imwidth=350)
Trump ‘ready’ for abortion question
Abortion was high on my debate bingo card and it’s come up just a few minutes into tonight.
This is a tricky issue for Donald Trump, who risks alienating either his core base or the moderate and independent voters he desperately needs, by coming out on one side or the other.
Trump looked ready for the question, and he’s given a very ambiguous response. Abortion is “complex, but not really complex”, he says. The ultimate Trumpism.
He goes on to say that, “like Ronald Reagan, I believe in the exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. I think it’s very important.”
Trump adds that a key consideration in the abortion issue is, “you’ve got to get elected”.
Joe Biden’s team has been preparing the president to aggressively attack his rival on the issue, and to try to use the ambiguity of Trump’s position to try to tie him with the most extreme Republican-enacted bans.
“It’s been a terrible thing, what you’ve done,” Biden tells Trump, but doesn’t grasp the opportunity to really hammer the point.
‘He beat Medicare to death’
That last answer from Biden was an absolute disaster.
In a rambling response to a question about debt, Mr Biden twice confused millions and billions, then confused a 24 and 25 per cent rate of tax, then lost his train of thought completely and froze, looking into the camera.
In an attempt to reset his answer, he began a new sentence: “We beat Medicare-”. But his time was up, and he was interrupted by the moderator.
![US President Joe Biden and former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump participate in the first presidential debate of 2024](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/28/TELEMMGLPICT000383643935_17195376947310_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqpVlberWd9EgFPZtcLiMQf0Rf_Wk3V23H2268P_XkPxc.jpeg?imwidth=350)
Donald Trump chimed in immediately: “He did beat Medicare. He beat it to death.”
This is exactly what Democrats were concerned about happening. There were heads in hands in the press room just now as Biden could produce nothing but dead air.
Trump questioned on abortion
Speaking on abortion resitrctions, Trump says: “I believe in the exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother, I think it’s very important.”
Flicking a finger towards Joe Biden, he claims: “They will take the life of a child in the eighth month, the ninth month and even after birth.”
He says the decision is returning to the states, adding: “It’s been a great thing.” Mr Biden hits back: “It’s been a terrible thing.”
Trump ‘starts strong - but goes into tangent’
Donald Trump started out strong but he’s gone into a lengthy tangent in a response on the economy that is hard to follow.
But the former president appears more confident, bullish and in control of the stage than his opponent.
![Trump and Biden in the opening minutes of the presidential debate](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/28/TELEMMGLPICT000383644006_17195372796680_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqILFBuYb-N5MIHKH0sBbcxKMT6oL1HdO2PoXNR8FNe4s.jpeg?imwidth=350)
Joe Biden has frequently been looking down, rather than at the camera. A big tactical mistake.
He’s also been jotting down notes on a pad of paper, and it could look to viewers at home as if he’s reading prepared lines - although neither candidate has been allowed to take any material on stage.
Trump accuses Biden of legal persecution
In the opening minutes of the debate, Donald Trump accuses his Democrat rival of persecuting him using the legal system - a reference to his recent conviction in New York.
“Trying to go after his political opponent, all of the things he’s done, we’ve become like a third world nation,” Trump says. “And it’s a shame.”
Trump hits Biden on Afghanistan withdrawal
Donald Trump is asked why his plan for bringing in tariffs will not further fuel inflation.
Trump answers: “It’s just going to cause countries that have been ripping us off for years like China- and many others in all fairness to China - it’s going to just force them to pay us a lot of money, reduce our deficit tremendously, and give us a lot of power for other things.”
![Trump speaks at the presidential debate](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/28/TELEMMGLPICT000383643742_17195370712930_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqNJjoeBT78QIaYdkJdEY4CnGTJFJS74MYhNY6w3GNbO8.jpeg?imwidth=350)
He pivots quickly to the US withdrawal from Afghanistan under Joe Biden, labelling it the “most embarrassing day in the history of our country’s life”.
‘Biden appears to have lost his voice’
There will be heads in hands in Democrat HQ already: Joe Biden appears to have lost his voice.
He was up first, to be questioned on the economy by Jake Tapper, but it is more difficult than normal to hear what he is saying. It is possible that the seven days of intensive debate training at Camp David has destroyed the president’s voice.
This will not help him. The biggest challenge for Mr Biden tonight was always that he would appear old and feeble against Trump -- and this only makes that more likely.
Both candidates look nervous as they head onstage
Both Joe Biden and Donald Trump looked a little nervous as they walked onto the debate stage.
Presidential debates have not historically moved the needle much in White House races.
That’s not the case tonight. A current US president and a former US president facing each other on stage is a historic moment.
In a very tightly fought race, they both know the stakes could not be higher.
Joe Biden’s voice is a little crackly as he takes the first question - on how to address the high cost of living.
Donald Trump sounds much stronger, but you can hear the nerves in his voice too.
Biden criticises Trump’s ‘terrible’ economic record
Asked about inflation, Joe Biden hits out at his economic inheritance from Donald Trump.
“Our economy collapsed... Unemployment rate rose to 50 per cent. It was terrible,” he says. “And so what we had to do is try to put things back together and that’s exactly what we began to do. We created 50,000 new jobs.”
Mr Biden is speaking quickly and sounds hoarse. He frequently pauses to cough.
Donald Trump Jr: This will be the most biased debate in history
Donald Trump Jr, the former president’s son, has tweeted to criticise CNN ahead of the start of tonight’s debate.
Trump himself has already started to undermine the credibility of the debate, attacking the CNN hosts and claiming it will be “three against one”. His outriders criticising the coverage tonight is laying the groundwork to claim he was unfairly treated later on.
Biden ‘jacked up’ on water
Joe Biden has poked fun at Donald Trump’s claims that he is taking performance-enhancing drugs for tonight’s debate.
With minutes to spare before the event begins, the US President posed with a can of $4.60 “zero malarkey” water, which supporters can buy to contribute to his campaign.
“I don’t know what they’ve got in these performance enhancers, but I’m feeling pretty jacked up,” a post on his social media account reads.
How many people will tune into the debate?
A recent New York Times - Siena College poll found that 74 per cent of America’s 161 million registered voters said they planned to watch the debate.
Were that to be true, that would mean 118 million people tuned into the debate, shattering all previous records - as well as dwarfing the 123 million who watched this year’s Super Bowl.
The previous record, according to Nielsen data was 84 million who watched Hillary Clinton’s first debate against Donald Trump in 2016, topping the previous high of 80.6 million who viewed the Jimmy Carter-Ronald Reagan debate in 1980.
Since then, the numbers have been declining, suggesting that the poll data is something of an overestimate.
There was a small upward turn in 2020 when 73.1 million watched the first Biden-Trump debate, but in general, numbers have been falling.
Interest tends to wane after the first debate, which makes tonight’s encounter especially important to both camps.
Unusually, with the two campaigns having agreed to the format of the debates - rather than following the template established by the bipartisan commission - there will be two commercial breaks.
‘Idea of Biden being replaced is farcical’
Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California, has hit out at suggestions that Joe Biden could be replaced before the Democratic convention as “nonsensical”.
He said: “This is a President of the United States running for re-election. He’s our guy. And that’s part of the diversion tactic of the right - to continue to sort of muddy the waters on all of that and that nonsensical speculation.
‘It’s just like the absurdity of who’s going to get an injection shot. I mean this is farcical. It’s serious stuff - democracy, freedom, liberty, rights.’”
![Gavin Newsom, governor of California, center, speaks to members of the media ahead of the debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/28/TELEMMGLPICT000383637203_17195355932900_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqgsaO8O78rhmZrDxTlQBjdGLvJF5WfpqnBZShRL_tOZw.jpeg?imwidth=350)
Newsom: Trump talks ‘gibberish’
Gavin Newsom, California’s governor, is on the floor of the spin room here in Atlanta.
He says the concerns over Joe Biden’s age have been “manufactured”, comparing the “gibberish” that Donald Trump comes out with. “He was talking about sharks the other day,” he said.
He points out that Mr Biden is the “most experienced” president in modern history.
Will Trump bring up Hunter Biden?
It is a safe bet to predict that Donald Trump may make at least one jibe about Joe Biden’s son Hunter tonight.
The First Son was convicted on three gun charges in a federal court in Wilmington, Delaware earlier this month.
The president is said to have been deeply affected by the trial and conviction, worrying about the toll on his 54-year-old son and his long battle with addiction.
Trump knows mentioning Hunter will hit a nerve for his opponent.
On the debate stage in 2020, he prompted a furious outburst from Biden when he referenced his son’s past drug use.
“My son, like a lot of people you know at home, had a drug problem,” Biden said. “He’s overtaken it... And I’m proud of him.”
Trump advised to act like a ‘statesman’
The word within the Trump camp is that they have been imploring their candidate to ignore his usual instincts when it comes to tonight’s debate.
Advisers have warned Donald Trump that his interruptions and rants during the 2020 debates alienated some of the voters they are hoping to win over tonight.
This time, they want him to appear more statesmanlike, and avoid the heckling. If he pays heed to that advice, we may see a more muted Trump than we are used to.
However, Sam Nunberg, a former Trump adviser, said the former president does not take kindly to traditional debate preparation.
He described previous mock sessions with former New Jersey governor Chris Christie as a bit of a disaster.
How, then, do you coach someone like Trump? “The best thing to do is always to say, ‘here’s what we suggest’, not, ‘here’s what you should say’,” Mr Nunberg told The Telegraph.
That is not to say Trump is not good at absorbing the information he’s being fed in his preparation sessions. “He’s a sponge,” according to Mr Nunberg.
Will we see personal attacks?
Veteran watchers of the 2020 presidential campaign know just how ugly these head-to-heads between Joe Biden and Donald Trump can become.
One of the last times the two men faced each other on a debate stage, Mr Biden repeatedly called Trump a “clown” and at one point told him: “You are the worst president America has ever had”. It was clear that he meant it, too.
Trump, meanwhile, claimed his Democratic rival had “graduated the lowest” in his university class. “Did you use the word ‘smart?’ “ Trump said. “Don’t ever use the word ‘smart’ with me.”
As Trump’s rants went on, a frustrated Mr Biden turned to him and said: “Will you shut up, man?”
Both men may want to turn down the heat this time around.
But there has been much discussion within the White House over whether the president should refer to his opponent as a convicted felon. Mr Biden’s team are juggling a desire to remind voters about Trump’s legal troubles without adding to the Republican’s claims the cases constitute political persecution.
Has Trump done enough preparation for tonight?
Donald Trump has deliberately kept his preparation for tonight’s debate to a minimum, in what could be a strategy to deflect blame if everything goes wrong later.
While Joe Biden has been at Camp David for the last week, debating aides pretending to be Trump and running through his policy positions, his main rival has been out on the road.
Trump, who revels in the attention of a crowd, chose instead to give rallies and events and kept his preparation to a series of “policy refreshers”.
Tonight we will see which strategy pays off. If Trump is stumped on policy issues or comes across less well-prepared than Mr Biden, he has an excuse ready to go.
How will Trump choose to attack Biden?
Donald Trump’s legal difficulties will provide a challenging backdrop for the debate, Christopher Galdieri, professor of politics at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire, told the Telegraph.
“I am not sure the televised debate format can handle a candidate who is a convicted felon, facing criminal charges in three more proceedings, and incited an insurrection, we’ll find out,” he said.
“Much of the Trump campaign, to the extent it is about issues at all, is about things that have improved recently. Inflation is cooling and wage growth is outpacing it; gas prices are lower than they were a couple of years ago; border crossings are down dramatically.
“So I’m curious to see if Trump hits Biden on these things anyway and, if so, if Biden can respond with facts or if vibes will win out here.
“I think Biden is facing a dynamic much like the State of the Union earlier in the year. Expectations are low so if he shows up and does a creditable job he’ll have exceeded them.
“The Trump campaign has figured this out very late in the game, so after years of painting Biden as a doddering old man they’ve spent the last week talking about him taking performance-enhancing drugs to try to head this off. I suppose this is one way of playing the expectations game.
“The Biden campaign clearly hopes this early debate will draw less engaged voters’ attention to Trump and Biden’s attacks on him as too dangerous to be allowed back into office.”
Joe Biden ‘likes to fight’, says White House
Karine Jean-Pierre, Joe Biden’s White House press spokesman, spoke to reporters on Air Force One en route to Atlanta this evening.
Declining to speak about Donald Trump by name, she said: “I’m not going to speak directly to tonight and directly to his main adversary this evening.
”But, look, you know this president. He likes to fight. He likes to fight for the American people. He believes in standing up for the American people. You see him do that over and over again.”
Ms Jean-Pierre, known in Washington by her initialism “KJP”, highlighted Mr Biden’s stance on abortion rights and border security as major themes of tonight’s event.
A test for Trump, Biden - and CNN
Tonight is a test for CNN as much as the two presidential candidates.
The cable network has come under fire from both the Left and the Right in the last few years over its coverage of Trump.
The medium of the debate doesn’t lend itself to real-time fact-checking, a favoured hallmark of the network’s coverage of Trump, and puts its own role in the debate under intense scrutiny.
The Republican candidate’s campaign has already laid the ground to claim bias in the debate, with Trump claiming it’ll be “three against one” .
The chatter has already prompted CNN to release a statement backing its two moderators, Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, saying there “are no two people better equipped… to co-moderate a substantial and fact-based discussion.”
Can Trump really be restrained?
The rules around tonight are largely geared towards reining in the free-wheeling, rule-breaking former president.
No props are allowed, no notes, and microphones will be strictly controlled to limit the possibility of interruptions.
It’s “like death”, Trump complained recently of the restrictions.
Will any of that work to contain Trump? It remains to be seen.
‘Don’t be a raging a--hole,’ Trump advised
A Republican who has been advising Donald Trump for tonight’s debate reportedly told the former president: “Don’t be a raging asshole while you’re on stage with Biden”.
The individual told Rolling Stone they had also advised Trump not to “take the bait” from the Democrat.
Trump is widely acknowledged to have performed poorly during the first presidential debate in 2020, when he interrupted Mr Biden dozens of times and repeatedly argued with the moderator.
‘Literally Anybody Else for President’
Polls show a majority of Americans do not want either Joe Biden or Donald Trump in the White House for another four years.
One man has taken extreme steps to highlight that point by running for president, legally changing his name from Dustin Ebey to Literally Anybody Else.
Ebey, a 35-year-old teacher and Army veteran from Texas, legally changed his name in January (he showed me his driving licence to prove it).
He told me outside the debate tonight that both leading presidential candidates: “are not of the people. No part of them represents the people.”
Mr Biden, he said, has been a politician for too long, while Trump, as a wealthy businessman, cannot understand the bread and butter issues affecting most people.
The critical question though, is whether Ebey plans to legally change his name back after November’s ballot? “Oh absolutely!”, he says.
RFK Jr supporters out in force near debate hall
Robert F. Kennedy Jr supporters are making plenty of noise outside the debate hall in Atlanta, Georgia, despite the independent presidential candidate not qualifying for the debate.
Tyler Hopgood, who is self-employed and works near the Atlanta area, said he was supporting “Bobby”, as his supporters call him, because of his anti-war stance.
Bob Schwarz, a non-profit worker, said he was annoyed that their candidate had been excluded from tonight’s debate. “If you look at the positions he’s taken on, he’s the best man for the job and the country,” he said.
Row breaks out between CNN and White House Correspondents’ Association
CNN, which is hosting the first debate, has upset the White House Correspondents’ Association by refusing to allow a pool reporter to be in the room during the debate.
Traditionally a reporter acts on behalf of the media, filing snippets of the president’s day and catching whatever he says.
But with the debate taking place without a live audience, CNN has decreed that should exclude even a representative from the Association.
“The White House pool has a duty to document, report and witness the president’s events and his movements on behalf of the American people,” association president Kelly O’Donnell said.
“The pool is there for the ‘what ifs?’ in a world where the unexpected does happen. A pool reporter is present to provide context and insight by direct observation and not through the lens of the television production,” Ms O’Donnell, who works for NBC added.
“A pool reporter is there to observe what is said and done when microphones are off or when either candidate is not seen on camera but may speak, gesture, move, or engage in some way.”
Microphones will only be switched on when it is a candidate’s turn to speak. But with the candidates only eight feet apart, there is still the possibility that they will still snipe at each other, with the barbs only being heard by those inside the studio.
Local frat boys ‘excited for debate’
Tonight’s debate is being held on the campus of Georgia Tech University -- a prestigious institute in midtown Atlanta.
The venue is surrounded by fraternity and sorority houses, and students are outside enjoying the sunshine watching reporters and political staff arrive.
![Members of the Kappa Sigma fraternity at their frat house, opposite the debate venue](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/27/TELEMMGLPICT000383637025_17195314027030_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqyuLFFzXshuGqnr8zPdDWXhbQKbwj1ZsnNMhuR7O6ySI.jpeg?imwidth=350)
Members of the Kappa Sigma fraternity were drinking and laughing outside their house.
“I’m excited for the debate,” said one member of the group, who declined to give his views on either Donald Trump or Joe Biden. “There are certainly two very different candidates on offer.”
Biden ‘needs to grow a spine’, say protesters
Several groups of protesters have gathered outside the police cordon of the debate venue in Atlanta ahead of tonight’s event.
One group holding a vocal pro-Palestine demonstration is the Party for Socialism and Liberation, which has made banners and t-shirts to protest against Joe Biden’s policy on the Middle East.
Monica Johnson, 25, said Joe Biden should “grow a spine and call for a ceasefire” in Gaza.
![Monica Johnson, 25, protests outside the first presidential debate in Atlanta, Georgia](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/27/TELEMMGLPICT000383635821_17195304638870_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqyuLFFzXshuGqnr8zPdDWXhbQKbwj1ZsnNMhuR7O6ySI.jpeg?imwidth=350)
“We’re here because we’re showing that there is a critical mass of people, huge amounts of people, that do not feel represented by the two party system and the two choices we have at this debate,” she told The Telegraph.
“Both of them are fully in support of genocide, [and] will continue to fund Israel no matter how many war crimes it commits. We are out here to show there is an alternative.”
‘Welcome to Atlanta’
Billboards mocking Donald Trump as a “convicted felon” have been set up along the route from the airport to the debate venue in Atlanta, the New York Times reports.
Three billboards, reserved by the Democratic National Committee, read: “Donald, welcome to Atlanta for the first time since becoming a convicted felon. Congrats - or whatever...”
When life gives you ‘CNN lemons’
Robert F. Kennedy, the independent candidate, failed to qualify for tonight’s debate - but supporters have nevertheless gathered outside the venue where Joe Biden and Donald Trump will square off.
Two of them have set up a “Kennedy lemonade” stand, seemingly a message that they are making the best of the “CNN lemons”.
Mr Kennedy has claimed that CNN, which is hosting tonight’s event, it is colluding with the Trump and Biden camps to exclude him from the debate stage - an allegation the broadcaster denies.
![Robert F Kennedy Jr supporters outside the first presidential debate in Atlanta, Georgia](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/27/TELEMMGLPICT000383636604_17195295798450_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqyuLFFzXshuGqnr8zPdDWXhbQKbwj1ZsnNMhuR7O6ySI.jpeg?imwidth=350)
Biden attacks Trump’s record ahead of debate
Joe Biden’s campaign has released an advert claiming Donald Trump is “unfit” for office ahead of this evening’s debate.
It quotes, among other figures, former vice president Mike Pence and former defence secretary Mark Esper, suggesting Mr Biden will go on the offensive tonight and attack his predecessor’s record.
“If the people who know Donald Trump best can’t trust him, neither can the American people,” Michael Tyler, communications director for the Biden campaign, said.
“If the people who know Donald Trump best can’t trust him, neither can the American people.”
Will Biden be ‘steady’ for 90 minutes?
How the candidates look will also be important.
“Being steady on your feet for 90 minutes is important and people will be watching Biden,” Mr Lord added.
“The optics are important. In the 1960 presidential debate, people who listened on the radio thought Nixon won. But Kennedy was better prepared for TV: he was suntanned wore a dark suit and took the television make-up.
“Nixon learned the lesson eight years later, he wore a dark suit and made sure he was suntanned.”
How Ronald Reagan addressed the ‘age issue’
Jeff Lord, who worked in the Reagan White House and on his campaigns, has observed presidential debates for decades.
“I learned a lesson when I was on the Reagan-Bush campaign. I was in the room and watched the vice-presidential debate between George HW Bush and Geraldine Ferraro,” he told the Telegraph.
“I thought Bush had done really well, But people who watched it on television said she had won.”
Mr Lord warned of the dangers of overpreparation amid reports that Joe Biden. had been closeted away rehearsing for the confrontation.
“In 1984 in the first debate with Walter Mondale, Reagan prepped and prepped and prepped. He was trying to remember a million facts and it did not go well. Mrs Reagan was furious.”
Mr Reagan changed his approach for second debate and, reassured his team he could take care of the “age issue” should it arise.
It did and Mr Reagan cracked arguably the best joke ever in a presidential debate when he pledged “not to exploit – for political purposes – the youth and inexperience of his opponent”. Even Walter Mondale laughed.
Where do the candidates stand in the polls?
With under five months until election day, the polls are still neck-and-neck between Joe Biden and Donald Trump.
The Republican had built up a substantial lead in the early months of 2024, but his momentum has been blunted after being convicted for falsifying business records last month.
Last week, Mr Biden took a lead in polling averages for the first time this year, inching ahead by 0.1 per cent.
However, this is well within the margin of error and Trump retains a lead in almost all of the swing states.
Read the full breakdown of the polls and how they have developed here.
How have Trump and Biden been preparing for tonight’s clash?
Joe Biden’s aides have scheduled in plenty of breaks while the US president prepares for Thursday’s debate to ensure he is in shape to face Donald Trump.
Mr Biden, 81, and his tight-knit team have relocated to Camp David, his secluded country residence in Maryland, for intensive practice sessions ahead of the first of two 2024 debates that could be pivotal to the election.
The Democrat leader’s aides are keen to ensure Mr Biden has a generous amount of down time ahead of the high-stakes event, in what has been described as a “prep-and-rest” routine.
For the Trump team, the debate is a chance to reset and move beyond the blanket coverage of the Republican’s criminal conviction last month.
Get the full inside-look at both camps’ preparations here.
Trump family member to spin on Biden’s behalf
A member of the Trump family will be in the spin room on behalf of Joe Biden.
The former president’s estranged niece, Mary Trump, has been deployed by the Biden campaign to convince reporters that her uncle is unfit for the Oval Office.
In 2017 Ms Trump wrote a best-selling book “Too much and never enough: how my family created the world’s most dangerous man.”
Trump’s brother, Robert, tried to prevent Ms Trump publishing the book, arguing that she was bound by a confidentiality agreement in 2001.
But in 2020 a judge in Poughkeepsie, New York, ruled in Ms Trump’s favour.
The battleground state hosting the debate
In a race full of razor-close battleground states, Georgia - where tonight’s debate is being held - may be the closest of the lot.
Joe Biden won the state by just 0.3 percentage points, or 12,670 votes in 2020. Current polling puts Donald Trump on course to take it back this year
Trump may have walked into a trap of his own making
For months now, Donald Trump has thrown down the gauntlet to Joe Biden, offering to debate his presidential rival “anytime, anywhere”.
After goading the Democrat into accepting his challenge, however, Trump will have to be mindful of the threats that this head-to-head in Atlanta on Thursday night poses to himself.
Agreeing to the debate is no doubt an admission by Mr Biden’s re-election team that their ailing campaign needs a jump start.
However, they have skilfully handled the negotiations, and the format is considered to be much more favourable to Mr Biden than his opponent.
Read the full analysis from Rozina Sabur, our Deputy US Editor, here.
Trump not accompanied by wife
Melania Trump did not appear to disembark the plane with her husband, who was accompanied by aides and Republican politicians instead. It is still unclear if she will attend the debate.
Mrs Trump has been a rare sight on the campaign trail and did not attend Trump’s criminal case in New York, where he was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records last month.
Biden team to broadcast anti-Trump abortion advert
Joe Biden’s campaign is planning to broadcast an advert attacking Donald Trump on abortion during one of the breaks in tonight’s debate, US media reports.
It strongly suggests that Mr Biden will attack the Republican on the overturning of Roe v Wade - the landmark case that recognised a right to abortion - when they face off this evening.
“These laws are truly barbaric. They are putting us back decades, if not centuries,” a doctor says in the advert, according to CNN. “Donald Trump did this. He put women’s lives in danger.”
Trump emerges from plane
Donald Trump has now left his private jet, pumping his fist and applauding as he made his way down the steps and into a waiting car.
Wearing his trademark Republican-red tie, the former president lingered on the tarmac to wave to supporters and mouth “thank you”, before being ushered away by security guards.
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Media waits for Trump appearance
TV cameras are fixed on Donald Trump’s Boeing 757, which has landed in Atlanta - although the former president has yet to emerge.
The plane’s door is open and stairs are set up for Trump and his entourage to leave. He is known to be travelling with senior aides including Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles.
Will Melania Trump be at the debate?
It’s still unclear if Melania Trump, the former First Lady, will appear to support her husband at tonight’s debate in Atlanta.
She has rarely been seen on the campaign trail, although Stephanie Grisham, her former chief of staff, said it would be “very surprising if she didn’t attend.”
“While Melania can be scarce for regular campaign events, she knows the importance (and significance) of being supportive as a spouse by attending events such as a presidential debate,” Ms Grisham told NBC News.
Mrs Trump was in the audience for the first debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden in 2020, later appearing on stage to congratulate her husband. Jill Biden. the First Lady, has already landed in Atlanta.
Trump arrival in Atlanta imminent
Donald Trump is scheduled to arrive in Atlanta for the presidential debate within minutes, according to an aide.
Dan Scavino, the former White House deputy chief of staff, said “Trump Force One” - referring to the former president’s Boeing 757 - was due to land in 20 minutes.
Security tightened as debate approaches
The security around the debate site and nearby press filing center is tightening up ahead of the head-to-head.
Unscalable fencing has gone up around the CNN studios where Joe Biden and Donald Trump will meet, as well as the Georgia Tech arena where hundreds of journalists are gathered to cover the debate.
There have been at least a few protesters near the site, including a man clad in a black-and-white prison-style outfit and a sign reading “Lock Biden Up.”
Various groups have indicated their intent to gather near the debate site, but a downpour of mid-afternoon rain may be dampening — literally — some of those plans.
![Police patrol a closed off street near the debate centre](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/27/TELEMMGLPICT000383611866_17195225538810_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqpVlberWd9EgFPZtcLiMQf0Rf_Wk3V23H2268P_XkPxc.jpeg?imwidth=350)
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The strict rules at tonight’s debate
Strict rules are in place for the debate, with CNN hoping to avoid the chaos which marked the clashes, especially the first when the moderators struggled to control the two candidates.
A key innovation will be that only one microphone will be live at a time, to avoid candidates interrupting and heckling each other.
Automatic muting was introduced at the request of the Biden camp.
The two podiums will be eight feet apart - which means it will still be possible for the candidates to trade barbs, even if they won’t be heard by the TV audience.
Candidates will be given two minutes to answer a question from the CNN moderators, Jake Tapper and Dana Bash. Their opponents will be allotted one minute for a rebuttal.
Lights on the TV cameras will tell candidates when their time is running out, initially turning yellow when there are 15 seconds left and then flashing when only five seconds remain.
Each podium will have a microphone, several pens, paper, a bottle of water and, according to CNN, maybe a towel if the candidates start sweating. Sweating was said to be a key factor in the 1960 debate between John F Kennedy and Richard Nixon.
While Mr Kennedy was prepared for the lights and camera, Mr Nixon started sweating and the optics, according to conventional political wisdom, did immense damage to his campaign.
Where Biden stands on major election issues
Joe Biden has pledged to “finish the job” if he is re-elected president in November 2024.
His campaign team has already set out plans he hopes to enact if he returns to the White House, on key policy areas such as the economy, defence spending and immigration.
What will the candidates focus on?
Biden advisers say the president will emphasize Trump’s role in threatening abortion access, portray him as a danger to democratic norms and remind voters of Trump’s often chaotic 2017-2021 term in office.
Trump will focus on the high levels of inflation and record numbers of migrants who have entered the country illegally under Mr Biden’s watch, and will also question his world leadership at a time of war in Gaza and Ukraine, Trump advisers said.
Trump lashes out at Biden ahead of the debate
Donald Trump has been lashing out at Biden on his Truth Social account ahead of the debate.
The former president criticised the president’s immigration policies and launched a tirade against the president, calling him a “threat to the survivial and existence” of the US.
Georgia: A key swing state
The first debate is being held at CNN’s studios in Atlanta, capital of Georgia, a crucial swing state for the election.
Georgia, a stalwart Republican state between 1996 and 2016, chose to take a chance on Mr Biden in 2020 and hand him a knife-edge victory that Trump sought to overturn.
That incident is now the subject of state legal proceedings against Trump and his team.
Mr Biden’s support now looks shaky – and could spell trouble for him in 2024.
Biden makes unexpected detour
Joe Biden stopped off on the way to the debate to meet supporters in downtown Atlanta.
Roughly around an hour after landing in Georgia, he made an unexpected detour to press the flesh.
Chanting four more years and waving Biden-Harris placards and undaunted by the 31C (87F) temperature, the crowd gave the president an enthusiastic welcome.
Georgia, a state which Mr Biden won narrowly, is one of the key races in November. However, the latest poll earlier gave Trump a five-point lead.
Biden en route
President Joe Biden arrives to board Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base en route to Atlanta for the first presidential debate against Donald Trump.
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![Mr Biden is greeted by Col Paul Pawluk, Vice Commander, 89th Airlift Wing](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/world-news/2024/06/27/TELEMMGLPICT000383615713_17195196123460_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqpVlberWd9EgFPZtcLiMQf0Rf_Wk3V23H2268P_XkPxc.jpeg?imwidth=350)
How to watch Trump v Biden
The first debate is being held at CNN’s studios in Atlanta, capital of Georgia, a crucial swing state for the election.
Tonight’s event will air live on CNN and will be streamed to CNN International, CNN Max and the CNN website.
It can also be viewed through any subscription service carrying CNN such as DirecTV Stream, fuboTV, Sling TV, Spectrum TV, Youtube TV and Hulu with Live TV.