Current:Home > StocksThe 5 weirdest moments from the grim first Biden-Trump debate -ProgressCapital
The 5 weirdest moments from the grim first Biden-Trump debate
View
Date:2025-04-12 12:52:24
The first presidential debate of the 2024 campaign was pretty much a disaster.
Joe Biden struggled, Donald Trump lied and CNN moderators Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, hamstrung by agreed-upon rules and not fact-checking, pretty much just sat there.
It was ugly, start to finish, and touched off a panic in the Democratic Party. I've written about a lot of debate coverage, and the reaction to this was unlike anything I've ever seen. Imagine the election as a horror movie and you'll have the idea.
Not surprisingly, the debate was filled with some weird moments. These are the five that stood out.
RFK Jr.'s shadow debate
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., running as a third-party candidate, didn't qualify for the CNN debate. Undaunted — if you can deny the proven effectiveness of vaccines then nothing is an obstacle, apparently — he conducted a shadow debate on X. Former ABC News reporter John Stossel "moderated" and truly, does anything speak better to the political moment?
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
It was one of the more impressive exercises in salving ego in recent memory, and that's saying something in a race that includes Trump.
No handshake between Biden and Trump
Typically the two candidates in a presidential debate would shake hands. An exception was 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. No one was shaking anyone's hand then, for fear of spreading the virus.
Well, 2020 and Thursday night. Biden and Trump entered the debate stage in Atlanta, serious looks on their faces (Trump looked kind of mad, actually) and just took their places behind the lecterns. In 2020, you could blame health concerns. In 2024, not so much. It seemed more like a lack of civility, and an acknowledgment of the enmity between the two candidates. Things only got worse from there.
Kamala Harris' debate reaction on CNN
The vice president appeared on CNN after the debate, in an interview with Anderson Cooper.
It didn't go smoothly.
Cooper, appropriately, quizzed Harris about Biden's performance. Harris wasn't having it.
“Yes, there was a slow start, but it was a strong finish," she said. "What became very clear through the course of the night is that Joe Biden is fighting on behalf of the American people. On substance, on policy, on performance — Joe Biden is extraordinarily strong.”
Cooper pressed on. "I’m sorry, on substance and policy and performance tonight, the president’s performance tonight clearly was disappointing for his supporters," he said.
Again, Harris was not taking the bait.
"I’m not going to spend all night with you talking about the last 90 minutes," she said, "when I’ve been watching the last three and a half years of performance."
Trump's bizarre shrug
The debate went on for more than half an hour before the moderators brought up the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot, and Biden was the first to bring up Trump's felony convictions.
"The only person on this stage who is a convicted felon is the man I'm looking at right now," Biden said, looking at Trump. You might think someone with 37 felony convictions on his record, who has been found liable for sexual assault, might react strongly.
Not Trump. Rather than blanch or cloud up, he just sort of nodded, along with a kind of "whaddya gonna do" shrug. In Trump world, this counts as discipline.
CNN's branding demands
CNN had exclusive broadcast rights to the debate and could have simply aired it solely on its TV network and online platforms. CNN is a mess right now and could have used the massive ratings an exclusive broadcast would have brought in. The network did the right thing, though, and allowed other networks to air it — but with some conditions.
The most obvious was that anyone airing it had to call it the CNN Presidential Debate, so you had the odd visual of, say, Fox News showing Biden and Trump with its competitor's name on the screen. Not that this stopped Fox News in particular from being, you know, Fox News. In the run-up to the debate, Fox News contributor Charlie Hurt praised Eric Trump for saying CNN had probably already given Biden the debate questions. Class acts to the end.
Finally, MSNBC and Fox News agree:The CNN Presidential Debate was a grisly mess
Reach Goodykoontz at bill.goodykoontz@arizonarepublic.com. Facebook: facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm. X: @goodyk. Subscribe to the weekly movies newsletter.
veryGood! (3)
Related
- FACT FOCUS: Inspector general’s Jan. 6 report misrepresented as proof of FBI setup
- Where is 'College GameDay' for Week 6? Location, what to know for ESPN show
- Body of Baton Rouge therapist found wrapped in tarp off Louisiana highway, killer at large
- Justin Theroux Gives Shoutout to “Auntie” Jennifer Aniston in Adorable Photo
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- D-backs owner says signing $25 million pitcher was a 'horrible mistake'
- Video shows Russian fighter jet in 'unsafe' maneuver just feet from US Air Force F-16
- Jury at officers’ trial in fatal beating of Tyre Nichols hears instructions ahead of closings
- Federal court filings allege official committed perjury in lawsuit tied to Louisiana grain terminal
- 'I'm sorry': Garcia Glenn White becomes 6th man executed in US in 11 days
Ranking
- Police remove gator from pool in North Carolina town: Watch video of 'arrest'
- Kyle Richards Swears These Shoes Are So Comfortable, It Feels Like She’s Barefoot
- Are LGBTQ Jews welcome in Orthodox communities? This is how they are building spaces of their own
- Woman associated with MS-13 is sentenced to 50 years in prison
- Michigan lawmaker who was arrested in June loses reelection bid in Republican primary
- Arkansas medical marijuana supporters sue state over decision measure won’t qualify for ballot
- Shell Shock festival criticized for Kyle Rittenhouse appearance: 'We do not discriminate'
- Are LGBTQ Jews welcome in Orthodox communities? This is how they are building spaces of their own
Recommendation
'Meet me at the gate': Watch as widow scatters husband's ashes, BASE jumps into canyon
Tigers, MLB's youngest team, handle playoff pressure in Game 1 win vs. Astros
Second fan files lawsuit claiming ownership of Shohei Ohtani’s 50-50 baseball
Sean 'Diddy' Combs faces 120 more sexual abuse claims, including 25 victims who were minors
Boy who wandered away from his 5th birthday party found dead in canal, police say
Why T.J. Holmes Credits Amy Robach’s Daughter for Their Latest Milestone
North Carolina Outer Banks plane crash that killed 5 under investigation
Crumbl Fans Outraged After Being Duped Into Buying Cookies That Were Secretly Imported