How Trump is Losing the Debate Expectations Game

Dan Pfeiffer: “Sure, Trump, at his rallies, spins an absurd tale of Biden using cocaine or performance-enhancing drugs, but that’s just red meat for the base. But Trump’s main message is that Biden can’t complete a sentence.”

“All of this makes it so much easier for President Biden to clear the low bar of expectations. Oddly, Trump used this same message before the State of the Union and then Biden excelled in comparison, giving his campaign a boost of momentum and quieting the calls for him to step aside for a younger Democrat.”

“Trump and the Right can’t help themselves. They believe their own bullshit when it comes to Biden. They created a caricature of the President and then came to believe it. They are so high on their own supply – as the Bulwark’s Sarah Longwell refers to it, that they can’t imagine Biden doing well; and when he does, they absurdly claim that his energetic performances are due to cocaine use.”

“Messing up the expectations game never mattered more than in this debate.”