Despite risks, Trump invests big in attacks on Biden's age
Source: ABC News
President Donald Trump has accused his Democratic rival Joe Biden of having connections to the radical left and has pilloried his relationship with China, his record on criminal justice, his plans for the pandemic and even his son's business dealings.
But in a kitchen-sink offensive backed by a mountain of campaign cash, the 74-year-old Trump has so far invested in one line of attack above all: the charge that his 77-year-old opponent is too old and mentally weak to be an effective president. The attack has drawn cries of ageism, and there is evidence it may be ineffective. Shrugging off the risks, Trumps team is pumping millions of dollars into the broadside and vowed this week not to back off.
With Election Day less than four months away, Trump has spent more money on one television ad claiming that Biden lacks the strength, the stamina and the mental fortitude to lead this country than any other single ad this year.
The 30-second spot and its Spanish equivalent have been running across 12 states, including retirement havens like Florida and Arizona, since mid-June at a cost of $6.5 million, according to data compiled by the media tracking firm Advertising Analytics. The firm noted a shift in recent days toward an unrelated Trump attack accusing Biden of supporting the far-left push to defund police departments, although he said he doesn't.
Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/risks-trump-invests-big-attacks-bidens-age-71677159?cid=clicksource_4380645_6_film_strip_icymi_hed
elleng
(131,009 posts)PoindexterOglethorpe
(25,865 posts)I will admit to being someone who is bothered by Biden's age, but at his worst, he's a thousand times better than Trump.
flibbitygiblets
(7,220 posts)lagomorph777
(30,613 posts)He'd win, greasy hands down.
justgamma
(3,666 posts)should just tell Chump that he won't exploit Chump's youth and inexperience. That we want a mature man running the country.
tulipsandroses
(5,124 posts)I'm sure he'll bluster and lie as usual but, this is not 2016, he's not getting a pass. Even if Biden has gaffes during the debates - he is strong on policy, details and fact. Trump is strong on bluster and BS. Nobody wants to hear that when people are dying, economy is crashing and the majority of the country is demanding racial justice. This mental capacity argument is not going to work in his favor
sandensea
(21,642 posts)Cheeto's 74 - going on 100.
Bayard
(22,112 posts)sandensea
(21,642 posts)A really bratty one.
lagomorph777
(30,613 posts)sandensea
(21,642 posts)Except that toddlers do (generally) outgrow their Terrible Two's.
This one got stuck.
Dem2theMax
(9,651 posts)And when I got done watching them, all I could say was, really? That's all you've got?
We could put anti-Trump ads on 24/7 until November, and we would not run out of fresh material.
One horrendous fact after another about Trump.
CentralMass
(15,265 posts)Some ads featuring them would be a great counter.
groundloop
(11,519 posts)thesquanderer
(11,990 posts)lagomorph777
(30,613 posts)Or at least get a few to sit this one out.
thesquanderer
(11,990 posts)We have better stuff to hit him on, rather than rehash stuff that made no difference to them in 2016 (the Gold Star parents and mock-disabled video).
lagomorph777
(30,613 posts)There's no room for excuses anymore.
thesquanderer
(11,990 posts)If we don't win any of them over, we lose.
You may say, they already have enough reason to switch, and if they haven't switched away from Trump yet, they're a lost cause racist pig. That may be true. But by that logic, there's no reason to run ANY ads against Trump. And maybe that's true, but I don't think I'd want to take that chance.
So I'm saying that, IF You're going to run ads against Trump, we have SO much to work with, so many new failures, so many things that have really caused damage, that there's no reason to go back to things that it turned out weren't sufficiently persuasive last time, that are "merely" a matter of character. We have already seen that a candidate's personal character is not of highest concern, and that's probably even more true in the context of people dying, an economy crashing, the ridicule of our allies, and proven untrustworthiness. That last one is character-related, but it's not character in the abstract as those older examples were (mocking disabled, Gold Star family, liking people who don't get captured, stiffing contractors, etc.), but that we cannot trust what he tells the American people on a day to day basis.
lagomorph777
(30,613 posts)But the real prize are the millions who sat it out. We can motivate them to get off their asses.
thesquanderer
(11,990 posts)...tend to be campaigns that fail.
Bernie Sanders focussed largely on bringing in new voters. He did a better than average job... but it wasn't enough. You can't get around the fact that people who have a history of voting are more likely to vote than are people who don't have a history of voting.
p.s. -- I edited and added a paragraph to the post you replied to. (You're fast!) So maybe check that out to for elaboration, thanks.
KY_EnviroGuy
(14,492 posts)Born: Keith Rupert Murdoch
11 March 1931 (age 89)
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Credit: Wikipedia.
KY.........
duforsure
(11,885 posts)trump has troubles sometimes walking , talking , and shows serious mental decline , so he has to attack Biden of his weakest area's , which is his bad health issues everyone can easily see.
lagomorph777
(30,613 posts)Senor Insomne
(36 posts)It's called a mirror. And I truly believe Joe should carry a small one for any and all encounters he may have with Donny.
lagomorph777
(30,613 posts)BlueStater
(7,596 posts)When you get right down to it, theyre BOTH way too old to be running for this job.
Of course, Trump would have been just as horribly unqualified and unfit 25 years ago as he is today.
Bayard
(22,112 posts)Projection again--I know you are, but what am I?
onetexan
(13,048 posts)Politicub
(12,165 posts)They air frequently. One is the ad that attacks Bidens age and the other is a scare ad about defunding the police.
If Trump is spending so heavily in Georgia, his internal polling must be showing he is losing here by a sizable margin.
Rizen
(712 posts)I ignored him. Some people are staggeringly stupid.
PlanetBev
(4,104 posts)Trump and Biden are only 3 and 1/2 years apart. Biden is fit and trim and Trump is an ambulatory pair of fat buttocks.