Chris Wallace blames Trump for trainwreck debate: 'He bears the primary responsibility'
The first 2020 presidential debate was a "total mess," primarily because of President Trump, moderator Chris Wallace says.
Wallace spoke on Fox News on Thursday two days after moderating the first 2020 debate between Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, which was widely considered a trainwreck and frequently went off the rails as Trump repeatedly interrupted Biden and Wallace when it wasn't his turn to speak.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Wallace noted that Biden did some interrupting, as well, but "less than half" as much as Trump. By about 45 minutes into the debate, Wallace said he realized what "a total mess and disservice this was to the country," and he lamented that the more orderly discussion of the issues he had extensively prepared for didn't take place.
"I had baked this beautiful, delicious cake, and then frankly, the president put his foot in it," Wallace said. "And that was frustrating."
The organizers of the 2020 presidential debates on Wednesday announced they'd be considering changes as a result of Tuesday's chaos, and one that has been suggested is the ability for moderators to mute the candidate's microphones. Wallace, though, told Fox this would put moderators in a "tough spot" and might not help much, since if Trump's microphone had been cut on Tuesday, "the president still would have been disrupting and distracting Biden." Brendan Morrow
Watch the latest video at foxnews.com
-
‘The economics of WhatsApp have been mysterious for years’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Will Democrats impeach Kristi Noem?Today’s Big Question Centrists, lefty activists also debate abolishing ICE
-
Is a social media ban for teens the answer?Talking Point Australia is leading the charge in banning social media for people under 16 — but there is lingering doubt as to the efficacy of such laws
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
Maduro pleads not guilty in first US court hearingSpeed Read Deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores pleaded not guilty to cocaine trafficking and narco-terrorism conspiracy
-
Iran’s government rocked by protestsSpeed Read The death toll from protests sparked by the collapse of Iran’s currency has reached at least 19
-
Israel approves new West Bank settlementsSpeed Read The ‘Israeli onslaught has all but vanquished a free Palestinian existence in the West Bank’
-
US offers Ukraine NATO-like security pact, with caveatsSpeed Read The Trump administration has offered Ukraine security guarantees similar to those it would receive from NATO
-
Hong Kong court convicts democracy advocate LaiSpeed Read Former Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai was convicted in a landmark national security trial
