Don't Worry, Trump. You Got This.

A Last Minute Huddle

Dear President Trump…here are a few more thoughts of unsolicited advice for the upcoming debate with Joe Biden.

1. The Media Will Lie No Matter What

You already know that CNN will do everything it can to help Joe Biden. This exchange with Karoline Leavitt on CNN made that painfully obvious.

Steve Bannon is now demanding you refuse to debate, but as you know, that would be a mistake. You’ve already won this debate walking in the door, even if the media will never present it that way.

CNN and MSNBC are in a ratings free-fall at the moment. It’s never been quite this bad. An appearance by you, Trump, obviously gives them a much-needed lift. They know it. You know it.

From last Friday:

Just 648,000 people watch Jake Tapper’s show on CNN now. That means, Trump, you’ve already won. Whatever it is they’re selling, Americans do not want. But they are still in the tank for Biden, and never forget that.

Biden just has to stand there and talk for 90 minutes, and MSNBC, CNN, the New York Times, and all of the talking heads in Left Press will paint it as a win. Okay fine. Biden is the one who must defend his record.

You should always remind audiences that you would not be standing there if Biden had done a good job.

The goal should be to surprise the people tuning in, expecting to see the monster they’ve been told exists. Show up as the guy who shows up at rallies, not the combative guy on defense. It’s less a debate with Joe Biden and more of an opportunity to vaporize the media narrative about you.

2. The Mindset

You have nothing to prove. They are more afraid of you than you are of them. What more can they do to you? You have been battle-tested by now. You stood in a room full of booing Libertarians. You sat in a courtroom for weeks and watched a phony show trial — yet another — play out. You have been impeached twice. They raided Mar-a-Lago. They lie about you every single day because they are afraid of you.

With the media already in the tank for Joe Biden, this debate should be a casual conversation, a cakewalk, where you do not lose your cool and put up a charm offensive. For you, the stakes are low. All you have to do is LET BIDEN BE BIDEN.

The Strategy

Biden is, in reality, a vindictive, petty, spiteful man. But his image is still as a kindly grandpa. He wins points by being feeble. So you can’t attack him or show animosity toward him, or it will backfire. Instead, be patronizing, condescending, and overly kind. Treat him like “a sympathetic, elderly man with a poor memory,” as opposed to a formidable force in government.

Most people watching will be expecting to see the demon — a frothing, angry Hitler-esque tyrant. How will they handle it if the charming Trump shows up? They won’t know what to do with themselves.

Sample Q&A

Fake Tapper: Do you believe Joe Biden won the election?

Trump: He obviously won the election, and then he wrecked the country for the next four years, which is the only reason I’m standing here now.

Fake Tapper: On January 6th, you incited a mob to attack the Capitol to overturn the election results of the 2020 election. How will you reassure the people that it will never happen again or that you won’t protest if you lose to Biden in 2024?

Trump: When I was Inaugrated, there was no peaceful transfer of power. The streets exploded in violent protests that went on for days.

Before that, my supporters were viciously attacked at rallies all because guys like you told your viewers they were racists.

How about you reassure me and my supporters that won’t happen if I win again? Or won’t the cities explode in fury like they did in the summer of 2020?

Fake Tapper: Do you feel responsible for inciting the Insurrection at the Capitol?

Trump: A lot of Americans were upset in 2020 with lockdowns and the loss of businesses, and it seems like the only people not allowed to protest or riot are MAGA supporters. Does Chuck Schumer feel responsible for threatening the Supreme Court before there was an assassination attempt on Justice Kavanaugh? Does Kamala Harris and Joe Biden feel like they promoted violence when they encouraged the rioters in the Summer of 2020?

Fake Tapper: You’re dodging the question. January 6th was extremely traumatic for many in government and sitting at home. Can you reassure them they will never have to live through anything like that again?

Trump: No one was advocating violence. I said, “peacefully and patriotically, have your voices heard.” I’ll always stand against violence, no matter what side it’s on. In case you haven't noticed, the violent protests haven’t stopped since January 6th but they’re all coming from your side. Violent offenders should be punished but equally. It seems our Justice System does not view all protesters the same way.

But more importantly, it’s four years later, and there’s terrible crime in cities, a wide open border bringing in drugs and crime. Maybe you should ask yourselves why January 6th is the only violence you want to talk about. Maybe your ratings would be better if you cared about what’s happening to people now.

Fake Tapper: You’re now the first former president to be convicted of a felony. Does that set a good example for young people?

Trump: Well, at least I was found competent enough to stand trial. The prosecutor wouldn’t even charge Joe Biden because he said he was too mentally incapacitated. So maybe that’s a compliment.

Fake Tapper: It’s a serious charge, though, Mr. President.

Trump: I’m standing here because this is a representative democracy, and millions of Americans have chosen me to clean up the mess Biden made. If Biden’s presidency hadn’t cratered six months into his first term, they wouldn’t have indicted me four times.

It would have been so much easier if Biden did a good job. He promised a better America when he took office. He’s failed. All he’s had to show for those failings is to attack me. I don’t think America needs four more years of that.

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You’re walking into the room already winning, even if the mainstream press won’t paint it that way. You have the winning record. You have hope and optimism to sell to the people. Biden has to defend his record of failure and his endless dark winter and has nothing to sell to the people they want, which is why he’s had to focus on you for four long years.

Ben Shapiro has great advice for specific questions and how they should be answered.

Victor Davis Hanson too:

Good luck on Thursday, Mr. President. We’ll be watching. You’ll do great.