Politico | Debates commission says it will try to add more order to Donald Trump and Joe Biden’s remaining showdowns
- Format changes sought after US president repeatedly interrupted Democratic opponent and moderator with baseless claims
- Trump attacked Biden’s family, while Biden called Trump a racist and clown and told him to ‘shut up’
This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Quint Forgey on politico.com on September 30, 2020.
The Commission on Presidential Debates announced on Wednesday that the prior night’s face-off between Donald Trump and Joe Biden showed the need for “additional structure” in the format of the remaining forums to “ensure a more orderly discussion.”
The non-partisan commission, historically responsible for organising and producing the quadrennial televised prime-time events, added in a statement that it “will be carefully considering the changes that it will adopt and will announce those measures shortly”.
The announcement comes a day after the first 2020 presidential debate, conducted on Tuesday night in Cleveland, drew almost universally negative reviews from media pundits and elected officials of both major political parties.
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Interruptions and insults dominate first Trump-Biden US presidential debate
Democratic critics condemned Trump’s behaviour over the course of the 90-minute broadcast, which saw the Republican incumbent repeatedly bulldoze through Biden’s responses and interrupt moderator Chris Wallace with a barrage of baseless claims.
The White House’s allies and conservative commentators, meanwhile, have charged that Wallace challenged Trump more than he did Biden, and asserted that the Fox News anchor displayed bias toward the Democratic presidential nominee.