Trump primes response in case of strong Biden debate showing

Former President Trump and his allies are laying the foundation to dismiss a strong debate performance by President Biden as a charade.

Trump and other conservatives have in recent days floated the baseless claim that if Biden does well at next week’s debate in Atlanta, it will be because he’s using some kind of performance enhancer. 

The claims echo a similar strategy Trump and others used to downplay Biden’s well-received State of the Union speech earlier in the year. They also come as some Republicans worry Biden will defy the caricature that Trump and right-wing media have painted of him as a feeble, confused old man.

“Republicans would be wise to play down expectations,” said one Republican strategist. “Make the point that Biden is a good debater.”