Trump, Biden Agree to Debate Rules as Americans Worry about Biden’s Age

The rules for the first presidential debate of 2024 have been set, with less than two weeks to go before incumbent Joe Biden squares up against former President Donald Trump. CNN announced on Saturday that both Biden’s and Trump’s campaigns have agreed to rules for the June 27 debate.

According to the network, the debate will last 90 minutes and candidates’ microphones will be muted outside of their allotted speaking time. Unlike previous debates, there will be two commercial breaks and no studio audience. Campaign staff are not permitted to confer with their candidates during the commercial breaks, and candidates will be provided with pen and paper, but props and prepared notes will be forbidden. The debate will take place in Atlanta, Georgia, and will be moderated by CNN anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash.

CNN also noted that there is a possibility that Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may participate, if he appears on enough state ballots in time for the debate. However, other candidates, such as Cornel West and Jill Stein, have not met the polling threshold to partake.

A survey conducted last week by J.L. Partners found that most Americans expect Biden to perform poorly in the debate. Fifty percent of surveyed voters expect Trump to win the debate, only 39% expect Biden to win, and 11% said they weren’t sure who will win. Additionally, 70% of voters expect Biden “to mess up his words,” 49% expect Biden “to forget where he is,” 41% expect him “to walk off the wrong side of the stage,” and 40% expect the 81-year-old Democrat “to have problems standing up.” When asked to summarize Biden in one word, the vast majority of voters — Republicans, Independents, and Democrats — responded “old.”

Biden’s own behavior has done little to allay voters’ concerns over his advanced age and declining cognitive state. At a Hollywood fundraiser on Saturday night, Biden refused to leave the stage until former President Barack Obama took him by the hand and led him away. At the G-7 summit last week, Biden wandered away from other world leaders and had to be retrieved by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

In March, U.S. Special Counsel Robert Hur concluded his investigation into Biden’s mishandling of classified documents as both a senator and the vice president. While Hur declared that Biden had committed crimes in his handling of classified documents, he announced that the president’s deteriorating cognitive state and poor memory precluded Hur from filing criminal charges.