Trump: I’ll Burn Down This House Before I’ll Give It Up

View of candidates on MSNBC before debate begins. From the back side, Biden looks to be in way better physical shape.

The quote came late in the debate, when the candidates were discussing urban violence and the BLM movement.

“He does not want to calm things down,” said Joe Biden of Donald Trump. “He pours gasoline on the fire.”

And right after that, moderator Chris Wallace asked Donald Trump to condemn white supremacist groups—whom his own government has identified as the main domestic terrorism threat.

Trump’s answer was incoherent. His message to the Proud Boys was “stand down, but stand by.” And then he referred to Antifa as it if were a thing.

“Antifa is an idea, not an organization,” Biden correctly countered.

 

Biden speaks. Trump is not happy listening.

I don’t think Joe Biden debated all that well, to be honest. He had his moments, but he did not always track the questions well and sometimes did lose count of his own points as he was answering.

But Trump. Holey orange crazy! What a hot mess. A family member observed on WhatsApp during the debate that it seemed like Trump became more orange as the night went on. Trump got into disputes with the moderator and seemed to be debating him rather than Biden. Trump repeated slogans like “law and order, law and order” but didn’t note any policy that leads to that.

Biden noted Trump’s pathetic response to protests so that he could clear a street for a photo opp, and Trump just responded with anecdotes about urban violence. But the uptick in violence is happening after more than three years of Trump as president. Warning us things will fall apart in Biden’s America because they are falling apart now seems like a really weird case to try and make.

 

And as Biden noted, the real threats to suburbs aren't BLM and Antifa. It's coronavirus and climate change that may wipe them (and the rest of us) out.

Sure, I know Trump claims violence is a problem because Democrats run cities—but as Chris Wallace noted, Republican cities are not peaceful, either.

And then there was the election. I don’t think our election system is perfect, but Trump suggests in advance that it’s fraudulent because he senses he will lose, and if you can’t win the game, you try to yell at the refs, I suppose.

Well, I saw on Facebook that some friends had tuned out. Honestly, after 45 minutes I was ready to do the same. I did not—I felt like I had to observe the whole thing. But it was tough to watch. A dumpster fire.

Like Trump’s America.

Put these yard signs up tonight. Nothing tonight changed my mind at all.