CNN’s Fareed Zakaria Calls First Debate ‘Make or Break’ for Biden After Sounding Alarm on Election Chances
CNN’s Fareed Zakaria called the upcoming June 27 debate a “make or break” moment for President Joe Biden amid his poor showing in the polls.
Zakaria joined Jim Acosta on Friday and discussed his recent blunt analysis of Biden’s campaign pointing out that “trend lines are not working in Biden’s favor” and raising alarms about the chances of a second term for former President Donald Trump. In a recent New York Times/Siena College poll, Trump was leading Biden in five of six swing states and holding double digit leads in multiple states.
Acosta asked Zakaria on Friday if he believed the upcoming debates could be a chance for the president to turn things around. Biden challenged Trump this week to two debates, which the former president quickly agreed to. A June 27 debate will air on CNN, and a September 10 debate will air on ABC.
“I think it’s a big moment for Biden. I think it’s in some ways a make or break [moment],” Zakaria said. “He has a lot more to gain or lose from this. He has to approach this as if he’s the underdog and as if he’s coming from behind, which is all true, but it’s hard for the President of the United States to think that way.”
Presidents often don’t perform well in first debates, Zakaria added, citing Barack Obama’s performance against Mitt Romney in 2012 as an example of this since Obama was seen largely as the loser of the debate despite being a “great orator.”
Biden needs to be “very feisty,” Zakaria said. The CNN reporter argued Biden’s polling gap likely comes down to voter confidence. He predicted the CNN debate will be one of the most-watched and discussed debates in history.
“The thing I pointed out in that commentary was he is really behind on the question of who is more competent and I believe that there’s a 25-point drop from the 2020 race for Biden,” he said. “That’s about energy, that’s about your ability to show that you’re in command, you’re in control — so it’s a big moment for Biden.”
Watch above via CNN.
