Dem
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GOP
49
Joe Biden has changed his reelection strategy. In addition to talking about his achievements, he is going to hit Trump where it really hurts him: Make him look weak or like a buffoon. That really gets under Trump's skin in a way that calling him an autocrat does not.
For example, at the (ex-)presidential extravaganza at Radio City Music Hall last week, Biden made a joke saying he once challenged Trump to a round of golf and was willing to spot him three strokes if Trump could carry his own bag. He also recently quipped: "The other day a defeated man who was crushed by debt approached me." He said he told the man: "I'm sorry Donald, I can't help you." Biden also has said the U.S. "deserves better than a feeble, confused, and tired Donald Trump." Some of Biden's ads also make Trump look foolish. Here is a split-screen one showing Biden acting presidential and Trump playing golf:
Most of the one-liners Biden has thrown out recently were his own invention. This makes them more authentic and relatable than something produced by some clever recent English major working on his ad team. Biden has also been referring to Trump as a "loser" recently, something that makes Trump's blood boil. One of Biden's advisers said of Biden: "He has Donald Trump read like a book, and it's fun to watch."
One point of the mocking is to get people to laugh at Trump. People tend not to vote for people they are making fun of. But there is another reason as well. When Trump gets really irritated, he tends to lash out and say things he hasn't thought out well (or at all). Sometimes these are actually pretty damaging and could reappear in Biden ads later on. In fact, some of Biden's ads now feature... only Trump. For example, how about this ad aimed at trying to convince supporters of Nikki Haley not to vote for Trump:
The entire ad depicts Trump dissing Haley. Biden is not in the ad at all. It looks more and more like Biden is really going to take the gloves off and go after Trump in a much nastier way than he did last time, but it could be effective, both with the voters and causing Trump to make an unforced error.
Biden is not the only one trying to make Trump look foolish. The Lincoln Project is still up and running. Here is a recent ad it made.
The Lincoln Project's website is at lincolnproject.us. Since it started in 2020, the group has made over 900 videos and is still pumping them out at a high rate (e.g., six in March and 11 in February). So it looks like this is going to be a much nastier (and perhaps funnier) campaign than 2020. (V)