There were some exhaustive, independent fact checks of claims made during the CNN debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Trouble was, none of them were available to the millions of people watching the two presidents in real time.
That was the result of CNN’s decision ahead of Thursday’s debate that moderators Dana Bash and Jake Tapper would be questioners, not arbiters. Supporters of President Biden were frustrated, since Trump was later flagged for more misleading statements than his rival, and it served to put greater emphasis on the Democrat’s tepid performance.
At the same time, it emphasized a puzzle the media has yet to solve after nine years of Trump operating in the public arena as it relates to the presidency.
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