Politics

The Week

If President Trump's calls for his Democratic challenger, former Vice President Joe Biden, to join him in taking a drug test before or after Tuesday night's presidential debate were ever serious, they gained little traction. But it did seem like Trump's campaign team was actually getting somewhere with its request that both candidates subject themselves to a pre-debate, third party inspection for electronic ear pieces.Biden's campaign reportedly agreed to the request a few days ago, but is now declining.> NEW: Joe Biden’s campaign agreed to an inspection for electronic ear pieces at tonight’s debate several days ago but are now declining, a source familiar tells me.> > — Ebony Bowden (@ebonybowden) September 29, 2020The Trump campaign's unfounded speculation that Biden is planning to cheat — whether via electronics or performance-enhancing drugs — during the debate has coincided with their insistence that the former vice president is a strong debater, which runs counter to their usual depiction of him as a gaffe-prone candidate whose mental fitness should be called into question.More stories from theweek.com 'Sully' Sullenberger savages Trump's 'lethal lies and incompetence' in new Lincoln Project ad The bigger truth revealed by Trump's taxes Trump reportedly made tens of millions in the Great Recession by partnering with multilevel marketing companies