The Southpaw vs. the Technician: What to Watch for During Tonight’s Debate

Biden is a skilled debater, but he’s never gone up against someone so unorthodox and willing to lie

Mike Muse
LEVEL

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Photos: Olivier Douliery and Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

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While presidential debates tend to be a reserved, even genteel affair, it’s difficult not to think that tonight’s first showdown between Donald Trump and Joe Biden will feel a lot more like a title fight in Las Vegas. Two heavyweights, two diametrically opposed ideologies, two different styles of debate — and two different fighting philosophies.

My prediction is Trump will be the southpaw debater of the night — like Manny Pacquiao or Conor McGregor, his lack of orthodoxy can be tough to counter because other fighters have less experience against it. Biden may be an experienced debater, but he isn’t used to debating a person that appears to suffer from pseudologia fantastica, a pathological compulsion to lie that’s deeply ingrained in his psychological makeup.

Don’t expect a knockout or even a standing eight-count to decide the match. This one’s going to go all 12 rounds.

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