**Debate-Watchers in Biden and Trump Camps Agree: Biden Had a Bad Night**
WASHINGTON (AP) — The collective gasp of “Oh, Joe” from patrons at a Chicago bar when President Joe Biden first stumbled verbally in his debate with Donald Trump encapsulated the sentiment of many Americans on Thursday night. Across the nation, in watch parties, bars, a bowling alley, and other venues, both Trump supporters and Biden supporters seemed to agree that the debate was a lopsided showdown.
By the end of the 90-plus minutes, some Democrats were trying to put a positive spin on the situation, saying it’s still early in the campaign and one debate doesn’t necessarily sway the nation. They urged people to judge Biden by his actions and plans rather than his debate performance. However, many were visibly let down.
Rosemarie DeAngelus, a Democrat from South Portland, Maine, expressed her disappointment from her watch party at Broadway Bowl. “Biden just didn’t have the spark that we needed tonight,” she said. In contrast, she noted that Trump showed “more spunk or more vigor,” even if she believed he was lying.
Lynn Miller, another Biden supporter at the bowling alley from nearby Old Orchard Beach, echoed this sentiment. “It’s like somebody gave Trump an Adderall and I don’t think they gave Joe one,” she said, referring to the drug used for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. “I’ve never seen Trump seem so coherent,” Miller added. “And I hate to say this, but Joe seemed a little bit off. But I still support him over Trump because Trump lied about every single thing that happened.”
Trump supporters were certainly pleased with the difference in energy and coherence between the candidates. Bonnie Call, wearing her red MAGA hat at a pro-Trump party in the Detroit suburb of Novi, said of Biden, “He just cannot think on his feet at all. President Trump is just on.”
In McAllen, Texas, at London’s Bar & Grill, the atmosphere was quieter than usual as patrons absorbed the debate from TV screens. Here, Biden supporters, Trump supporters, and undecided voters mingled. Vance Gonzales, a 40-year-old moderate Democrat, was convinced that “we need another Democratic candidate, to be honest, because this is not competitive.” He found Biden’s performance disappointing, saying, “He’s not on point with anything.”
Marco Perez, 53, who voted for Biden in the last election, voiced his frustration. “I want to hear more facts, more action as opposed to more finger-pointing, more accusations or false accusations,” he said. His friend Virginia Lopez, sitting with him, was still undecided about whom to support in November. “Trump is just deflecting in all the answers and he’s just lying,” she said. “It doesn’t feel like a real debate.” Regarding Biden, she added, “I just feel like he’s too old.”
Hector Mercado, a 72-year-old veteran wearing a U.S. military beret, listened intently to the debate. Although he was a Democrat for several years, he switched parties under Ronald Reagan. Mercado heard Biden accuse Trump of making derogatory comments about veterans, but it didn’t sway his support for Trump. “Yeah, he said a few things bad about veterans at one point back in the early days,” he said of Trump. “But now he’s saying, ‘No, I back up the veterans and I never had any problems with him. I got a raise in my VA disability when Trump was president.” Biden’s performance left him cold. “I think Trump is stronger,” he said, “and Biden is a little weak.”
In a Tijuana migrant shelter over the border in Mexico, people mainly from southern Mexico who are hoping to apply for asylum in the U.S. watched the debate in folding chairs in front of a screen on the wall. The migrants, most of whom have been waiting for months for their appointments, stared blankly at the screen as a Spanish-translated version of the debate played on. Andrea, who did not give her last name due to threats of violence back home, has lived at the shelter for nine months. Her takeaway from the debate was, “Well, I feel that the people of the United States don’t love Mexicans now.”
At Hula Hula, a tiki bar in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, patrons cheered wildly as their city got a mention from Trump — even if it came up when the Republican was complaining about lawlessness. Biden supporter Amy Pottinger of Seattle said the Democratic president did best when Trump made him angry. “Once he started talking about Roe v. Wade, it was like Biden woke up and was here,” she said.
At the same Chicago bar where patrons exclaimed about Biden’s stumbles — the M Lounge in the South Loop — the president scored with this zinger to Trump: “You have the morals of an alley cat.” “Whoa!” the viewers there said.
But at a Democratic watch party in downtown Atlanta, it was a night of jitters. “I’m so nervous, I feel like my kid is going onstage,” Georgia state Sen. Nikki Merritt said early on, patting her stomach as if she had butterflies. Technicians struggled with sound and video. During one outage, the crowd chanted “Let’s Go Joe!” “I want to hear Joe Biden talking to the voters and ignoring the crazy man in the room,” said Matthew Wilson, the Georgia Democratic Party’s vice chairman. But there was no ignoring the man they called crazy.
Source: Associated Press
