of extremely High Intelligence
Yes, we do want someone who knows how to utter a coherent sentence, whether to us or to Putin or to Zelensky. That’s one reason we don’t want Trump.
Word is he’s gonna snub the debate and have a chat with Tucker Carlson instead.
Actually, I hear way too many Americans (even ones of high intelligence and education) saying they don’t want a president who’s smarter than they are.
WTF? That’s exactly what I want! At least smarter at things that relate to their job.
“I don’t want a President who’s smarter than I am, I want a President I can have a beer with!”
Replace “President” in that sentence with “fire chief,” “surgeon,” and “financial manager” to appreciate the absurdity of the electorate.
It’s not just American anti-intellectualism at its finest. It’s also a clear example of the tendency to change one’s position based on one’s, er, position. That is, when you’re the underdog challenger, you want debate. When you’re the favorite incumbent, you don’t. The side that’s in a position of power almost never wants to allow debate, and the side that wants to shut down debate is almost always in the position of power. *cough* Genderists *cough*
It’s hard for him to know if he’ll be in court, or in jail, on the day of the debates. It makes sense to keep his schedule open.
It’s been my experience that the presidential debates held other than the Nixon-Kennedy debates, they aren’t really debates. They are joint campaign appearances, with the goal not to score points, nor answer questions but to find the opportunity to spout coached talking points that will become buzzwords in the media. A secondary, but very important goal is to not fuck up by saying something stupid wthat will be made the focus of the debate. Don’t be like John Stockdale. The only thing that people remember about him is that he said “Who am I? Why am I here?” in the 1992 vice presidential debate.
Or of Very Little Brain.
Oh for the humility of the blue collar voters interviewed in a Baltimore bar who, according to the classic anecdote, rowed back from their endorsement of Spiro Agnew (then Vice President) with the caveat: I don’t think the President should be someone who sounds like I do after I’ve had a couple of beers.