President Biden and former President Donald J. Trump will be alone in the CNN studio on Thursday, eight feet apart and an ideological world apart in the bright lights.
But a number of advisers will camp nearby in green rooms prepared for their teams, where the first lady, Jill Biden, is also expected to watch the high-stakes debate. It is expected that Dr. Biden is the only member of the Biden family in attendance, according to people familiar with the plans who were not authorized to describe them further.
It is not clear who, if anyone, from Mr. Trump’s immediate family will be there to support him. Trump’s most politically active son, Donald Trump Jr., was unable to be there due to a previous family commitment with his eldest daughter, according to a person familiar with his plans.
But there will be at least one member of the Trump family there – standing on stage for Mr Biden.
Mary Trump, Mr. Trump’s estranged niece, is among the half-dozen representatives the Biden campaign is sending to the campaign floor on Thursday.
“We cannot afford to let Donald Trump near the levers of power again,” Ms. Trump said in a statement before the debate. Other Biden surrogates include Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia and Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas.
The debate will have two three-and-a-half-minute commercial breaks, but neither Mr. Trump nor Mr. Biden will be allowed to mingle with their campaign teams nearby during those breaks.
Mr. Biden flew to Atlanta on Thursday afternoon after a week of rehearsals at Camp David, accompanied by political and government advisers. Mr. Trump flew in from Florida with his team.
The Trump campaign did not respond to questions about who would attend the campaign on his behalf. But a number of high-profile campaign officials will attend a fundraiser and watch party hosted by Kelly Loeffler, a former senator from Georgia. Among them are three people believed to be top contenders for a vice presidential pick: Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota and Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida.
Other Republicans who traveled to Atlanta and will attend the campaign party include Reps. Byron Donalds of Florida and Wesley Hunt of Texas, who held a Black outreach event in support of the Trump campaign on Wednesday night went; Ben Carson, another potential vice presidential candidate who served as Trump’s Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; and Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, the No. 4 Republican in the House of Representatives, who has also been mentioned as a potential candidate to run.
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2024-06-27 21:00:07
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