Trump, Biden head into first debate with presidency on the line
Tuesday September 29, 2020
There will be no handshake, but venom to spare when President Donald Trump and challenger Joe Biden meet in Cleveland on Tuesday for the first of three televised debates that could shake up an already volatile race for the White House.COVID-19 restrictions will give the debate moderated by Fox News star Chris Wallace a streamlined look with a smaller audience. Naturally, there won't be the once standard even if occasionally forced show of goodwill in shaking hands as the rivals go on stage.What the 90-minute clash will have is a chance for Americans finally to see Trump, 74, and Biden, 77, go head to head.With Trump claiming Biden is virtually brain dead "Biden doesn't know he's alive" and Biden branding the president "a toxic presence," it won't be for the faint hearted.Significantly behind in the polls, Trump is in fighting mode, embarking on an endurance-testing schedule of rallies in key battlegrounds several times a week.Biden, though, comes hoping to press his advantage.And he arrives aided by The New York Times' publication of a report purporting to reveal the contents of Trump's deeply secret tax returns finding that the self-proclaimed billionaire and champion of the working class avoids paying almost all federal income taxes.<br clear="all">
