ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - Thursday will mark the first presidential debate of 2024 between current incumbent Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.
Compared to the first presidential debate in 2020, which many saw as an overall mess and circus show all around, it will unlikely have the same fireworks as 2020 did, with the debate that is hosted by CNN at CNN's Atlanta's Headquarters set to have microphones muted, no live studio audience.
Trump and Biden won't be allowed to talk with their teams during commercial breaks and neither. The candidates are also not allowed any props or prewritten notes during the debate.
"The campaigns have pretty much just shoved the previous debate structure and have negotiated a debate that follows somewhat different rules than it had obtained in the past," said Paul Simon Public Policy Institute Director John Shaw on Total Information A.M. Thursday. "I think those rules will probably shape how the debate unfolds."
From the outside perspective, the rules seem to favor Biden, with Trump having in past debates, often attacking other candidates and using the crowd to his advantage regardless if they clap or boo for him.
"I think it's critical to say that Trump is a performer perhaps more than anything else," said Simon. "A lot of the debates where there are audiences, people have responded to him very very clearly, often times with applauses and sometimes with boos. He seems to relish a response whether it's positive or negative. It be interesting to see how he rolls in a forum where it is quiet."
Shaw thinks that there's plenty up for grabs between the two despite the first debate being five month's out of the November election.
"Independents are up for grabs. I think there is some evidence that since Trump's conviction, independents have drifted slowly, but pretty steadily away from him into the Biden camp, so that's critical." said Shaw. "I think there's about a 10-15% of Republicans who are really uncomfortable voting for him. Whether he's able to give them assurances he's a different person, or whether they see the same old Trump is critical."