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Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest. Happy debate night! Finally, the candidates are being put to the test on the stage together again, four years older, with plenty more scars and facing all the same hazards, except heightened. I can say affirmatively that everyone is holding their breath. Today, I reveal the whispers around town about a debate that could dramatically change the stakes of an election that has been a dead heat for over a year.
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The Best & Brightest

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Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest. I’m Tara Palmeri.

Happy debate night! Finally, the candidates are being put to the test on the stage together again, four years older, with plenty more scars and facing all the same hazards, except heightened. I can say affirmatively that everyone is holding their breath. Today, I reveal the whispers around town about a debate that could dramatically change the stakes of an election that has been a dead heat for over a year.

🎧 Programming note: I have a rollicking episode of Somebody’s Gotta Win with The Bulwark’s Marc Caputo that’s a solid debate primer, laying out our fresh reporting on what the candidates are being advised, their mental states, the pitfalls, the stakes, and of course, our predictions.

But first… Here’s Dylan Byers with an update on the other media story in town…

  • Politico’s prince: For well over a year now, Politico founding editor John Harris and his heir apparent Alex Burns have been trying to turn the once-scrappy and then long-complacent news outfit into a truly professional, world-class news organization, befitting their owner Axel Springer’s ambition of...

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A Trump-Biden Debate Pre-Mortem
A Trump-Biden Debate Pre-Mortem
I chatted with some of the top operatives around town to get their honest read and predictions on tonight’s first, and possibly only, presidential debate. Here’s what people in this town are whispering under their breath.
TARA PALMERI TARA PALMERI
There’s a palpable enthusiasm in political circles, à la 2016, ahead of tonight’s historic presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump—the first time that a current and former Oval Office holder have engaged in televised battle about their competing visions for the nation. And given that this election season has coalesced around Trump’s legal headaches, the January 6 plot, Biden’s son’s own legal troubles, and questions about their advanced ages, tonight’s CNN debate promises to be...
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Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest. Happy debate night! Finally, the candidates are being put to the test on the stage together again, four years older, with plenty more scars and facing all the same hazards, except heightened. I can say affirmatively that everyone is holding their breath. Today, I reveal the whispers […]
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Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest. Happy debate night! Finally, the candidates are being put to the test on the stage together again, four years older, with plenty more scars and facing all the same hazards, except heightened. I can say affirmatively that everyone is holding their breath. Today, I reveal the whispers […]


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Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest. Happy debate night! Finally, the candidates are being put to the test on the stage together again, four years older, with plenty more scars and facing all the same hazards, except heightened. I can say affirmatively that everyone is holding their breath. Today, I reveal the whispers […]
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Julia Ioffe • June 27, 2024
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Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest. Happy debate night! Finally, the candidates are being put to the test on the stage together again, four years older, with plenty more scars and facing all the same hazards, except heightened. I can say affirmatively that everyone is holding their breath. Today, I reveal the whispers […]
Rachel Strugatz • June 27, 2024
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Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest. Happy debate night! Finally, the candidates are being put to the test on the stage together again, four years older, with plenty more scars and facing all the same hazards, except heightened. I can say affirmatively that everyone is holding their breath. Today, I reveal the whispers […]


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Julia Ioffe • June 27, 2024
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Julia Ioffe • June 27, 2024
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Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest. Happy debate night! Finally, the candidates are being put to the test on the stage together again, four years older, with plenty more scars and facing all the same hazards, except heightened. I can say affirmatively that everyone is holding their breath. Today, I reveal the whispers […]


Julia Ioffe • June 27, 2024
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Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest. Happy debate night! Finally, the candidates are being put to the test on the stage together again, four years older, with plenty more scars and facing all the same hazards, except heightened. I can say affirmatively that everyone is holding their breath. Today, I reveal the whispers […]

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