US President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, in the wee hours of Friday, faced off in the first debate in the 2024 presidential election campaign in the United States.
The format, with each taking turns to speak with their opponent’s microphone muted, was designed to prevent a shouting match with both talking over each other.
The debate was aimed to highlight the differences in the performances of the two men.
Trump appeared confident, on the front foot and in command, even if his claims sometimes stretched the truth to breaking point. On the other hand, Biden was hesitant, sometimes stumbling over his words and at one point appearing to freeze, few minutes into the debate.
However, the 90-minute live TV debate has raised dust both in the United States and beyond as divergent comments have continued to trail the performances of both leading candidates in the forthcoming US presidential election.
In Nigeria, a former Minister of Aviation and chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, described the debate as a “bad day” for the Democrats and President Biden.
He opined that allowing Biden to participate in the debate was a “greatest disservice” done to the US President by his handlers, adding that he had no business seeking re-election.
Earlier, a former member of the Nigerian Senate in the 8th National Assembly, who represented Kaduna Central senatorial district of Kaduna State and chieftain of the opposition Peoples DemocraticParty (PDP), Senator Shehu Sani, had predicted Trump’s victory over Biden in the debate.
In his post-debate reaction, Fani-Kayode said: “Donald Trump literally MURDERED Joe Biden in their 90-minute encounter last night.
“It was a horror show for the Dems and it ended in the total and complete massacare and annihilation of their feeble, ailing, mumbling, weak, disconnented, stuttering, verbally incomprehensible, mentally vacant and utterly lost presidential candidate.
“I believe the greatest disservice that Bidens handlers did to him was to allow him to participate in that debate.
“If I didn’t despise him as much as I do, I would feel sorry for Joe and I assure you that he has NO chance of being re-elected as President in five months time.
“He is not only a great danger to America but he is also a great danger to the world.
“He did not need a debate last night and neither does he need to run for President: what he needs are prayers and a good doctor and what the Dems need is a new candidate to replace him.
“I thank God for the timely, dramatic and remarkable return of Donald J. Trump to the world stage.
“We missed him sorely and we need him now more than ever!
“He WILL be elected as America’s next President and he may yet save the world from WW3.”
For his part, Senator Shehu Sani, in a post via his X handle on Thursday, said: “Trump will win today’s debate against Biden. He is on a vantage position to pick a lot of holes in the Biden administration, if he doesn’t lose his temper.”
Meanwhile, after the debate, political figures and commentators in the United States were contemplating replacing Biden as the presidential nominee – with some Democrats describing his debate performance as an “unmitigated disaster”, “a meltdown”, and “a slow-motion car crash”.
It’s “time to talk about an open convention and a new Democratic nominee,” one Democratic politician told Sky’s US partner network NBC News.
Another said: “This was like a champion boxer who gets in the ring past his prime and needs his corner to throw in the towel.” They added he meant President Biden should exit the race.
A senior aide to former President Barack Obama, David Axelrod, told CNN: “There is a sense of shock at how he came out at the beginning of this debate. How his voice sounded. He seemed a little disoriented.
“There are going to be discussions about whether he should continue. Only he can decide if he’s going to continue,” Axelrod added.
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