Friday briefing
In the first debate of 2024, Biden struggled and Trump bluffed
Former President Donald Trump repeatedly attacked an incoherent President Biden yesterday during the first debate of the 2024 presidential campaign.
Trump, 78, spoke clearly and forcefully, attacking Biden’s record, making wild claims and lying repeatedly. Many of Trump’s claims have become campaign staples, such as the counterfactual claim that there would be no war in Ukraine if he were in the White House or the false claim that the Justice Department was involved in the state’s cases against him.
Trump criticized Biden for promoting “Biden migrant crime” with his border policies and for corruption, among other things. Biden went after Trump for threatening to withdraw the US from NATO and disrespecting veterans, but stumbled when he tried to draw a contrast with Trump on abortion
Biden also exaggerated some issues, such as how much Trump’s tariff plan on most imported goods would cost American citizens. Here’s our fact-check of the candidates’ claims.
President Biden, 81, who entered the debate hoping to reassure voters concerned about his age, spoke mostly in a softly gravelly voice, with a shaky delivery that was sometimes difficult to understand. He rambled and often seemed to lose the thread — at one point Trump said, “I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don’t think he knows what he said either.”
Biden’s campaign later said he had a cold, but his performance seemed likely to heighten concerns about his suitability for the job.
Trump supporters quickly claimed victory, while many Democrats spent several minutes wringing their hands over the debate. Here’s a sample of the reactions.
It became very personal: Biden called Trump a “loser” and a “loser” and compared him to an “alley cat” over his alleged infidelity with a porn star. Trump called Biden a “weak” president who world leaders “laugh at.”
Quotable: “It was a very disappointing debate performance by Joe Biden,” Kate Bedingfield, Biden’s former White House communications director, said on CNN. “I don’t think there’s any other way to cut it up. His biggest problem was proving to the American people that he had the energy and stamina – and he didn’t.
As Macron rolls the dice, France holds its breath
Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, shocked his nation when he dissolved parliament and called early elections after his party was defeated by the far right in the European elections. On Sunday, voters go to the polls for the first round of voting.
For insight, I spoke to Roger Cohen, head of The Times’ Paris bureau.
What is at stake?
Roger: Well, President Macron has taken a huge gamble. The immediate possibility is that the far-right National Rally could win a majority, or even an absolute majority, in the national parliament. That would mean the end of a post-war absolute taboo in France against the far right obtaining the highest government positions.
Why would Macron call this vote after suffering a heavy defeat in the EU parliamentary elections?
Some think he is calculating that if the National Rally enters government now, the party will be discredited in the 2027 presidential elections, because it is much more difficult to govern than to harass from outside the gates of power.
Do you think this is a good strategy?
No. I think, first of all, it’s unnecessary. Second, it is extremely risky. Third, the Olympics start in less than three weeks and all eyes are on France. Fourth, it raises the possibility, if the far right wins, of violence in the streets, of protest, of chaos. So the question is: Is the president really ready for France to present a picture of chaos when the Olympics begin?
Now, none of that will happen. But was it wise? Was it wise? Was it rational? I don’t really think so.
What do the French people think of this?
The general atmosphere here is one of dismay, bewilderment and tension, which is now mostly present under the surface. There is fear of violent demonstrations if the far right wins a major victory.
What do you think is likely to happen?
I think the most likely outcome is a National Rally victory – maybe a 20 percent chance of them winning an absolute majority. But it’s more likely that they will be by far the largest party. Macron will then be faced with a parliament dominated by the National Rally, with a large far-left presence, and with his party and its relative power in parliament greatly diminished.
For more information about the French elections:
Iran’s Disappointing Presidential Elections
Iran holds a special election today to replace President Ebrahim Raisi, who was assassinated last month. Voters show little enthusiasm for any of the six candidates, and even those who said they would vote in the election have little confidence that their lives would improve.
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When I was 30
In honor of Pride Month, 30 LGBTQ artists ranging in age from 34 to 93 shared a memory of their 30th year with my colleagues at T: The Times Style Magazine.
Their answers form a chronology, a group portrait and a multifaceted gay history that stretches from almost a decade before Stonewall to 2024.
