One of the biggest bits of drama in the otherwise tightly scripted Democratic National Convention was whether the new nominee, Joe Biden, would fumble his big acceptance speech with an embarrassing gaffe or a "senior moment." And why would people think that? Well, President Trump and his campaign have been predicting as much for weeks. They even spent a lot of money on an online ad this week claiming Biden is in "cognitive decline."
The DNC appeared unsure, too, prefacing his speech with repeated mentions of Biden's history of stuttering — including a story about his mother threatening to assault a teacher-nun who mocked her son's stutter in class and this moving video from a young Brayden Harrington.
But Biden rose to the occasion. And his speech looked even better, it was widely noted, because Trump and his allies had set such a low bar for him to clear.
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Some people were still not impressed that Biden could read a speech without stumping, but that isn't all he did, of course.
Maybe the Trump team will learn the art of expectations-setting before the debates. But for now, Biden can finally say: Thanks, Trump.
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