MSNBC host Alex Wagner worried President Biden had to overcome a "structural disadvantage" in the upcoming debates because he was held to a "much higher" standard than his GOP rival, former President Trump.
"It already feels like the bar that is set for Biden to clear is so much more substantially higher than the one Trump has to clear. Which is literally, ‘Is he alive?’ ‘Is he standing?’ ‘Are there words coming out of his mouth?’" Wagner said during her Saturday night program.
Wagner was discussing a recent column by her guest, The New Yorker's Susan Glasser, arguing that Trump's "incoherent rambles" at his rallies were evidence of his "age-related decline" that made him unfit for office.
"I would say even from 2016 to 2020 to 2024, the progress of a Trump rally shows you pretty clearly a man on a sharp downward slope," Glasser told Wagner.
MSNBC HOST PRAISES BIDEN AS ‘PLAYING CHESS’ WHILE TRUMP ‘AT BEST IS PLAYING HUNGRY HUNGRY HIPPOS’
Wagner and Glasser said Trump's rambling stories do not get the same kind of media attention as reports critical of Biden's age and mental fitness.
The MSNBC host balked at a statement Trump campaign adviser Jason Miller gave to The New York Times claiming Trump was prepared for the debates because he "takes on numerous tough interviews every single week and delivers lengthy rally speeches while standing, demonstrating elite stamina."
"It's almost like what he says is beside the point," Wagner said. "The fact he’s up there standing, still talking is enough, the Trump team thinks, to placate anyone or dissuade them from thinking he’s somewhat adult. And thus far, they seem to be right."
"The fact of the matter is, there’s way more scrutiny on President Biden than there is on former President Trump, given the absurd tirades and non-sequiturs that are now part of his daily routine," she said.
Wagner wondered if Biden could overcome his "structural disadvantage" in the media in time for the upcoming debate on June 27.
"I wonder if there’s any way for Biden to overcome what seems like a structural disadvantage in the weeks leading up to what’s going to be a pretty important inflection point in this campaign," she said.
Glasser said Biden faced a "tougher task" than Trump because the former president catered his message to his followers "who don’t hold him accountable to the same standards as other public officials in this country."
"The challenge with running against Trump for Biden is it's not really a head-to-head contest in which they’re both being judged in the same terms," she said.
