ANTICIPATED DEBATE.

>> BRANDIS, A PANDEMIC, A RACIAL

JUSTICE MOVEMENT AND A RUSH TO

CONFIRM A SUPREME COURT JUSTICE.

WITH THE ISSUES FRONT AND

CENTER, DONALD TRUMP AND JOE

BIDEN FACE OFF IN THE FIRST OF

THREE PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES.

JOINING US TO SHARE WHAT THEY

WILL BE WATCHING FOR TONIGHT ARE

ED LEE, HE'S SENIOR DIRECTOR OF

THE ALVIN W. BARCLAY FORUM AT

EMORY UNIVERSITY ATLANTA.

AND MARI MASENG WILL, PRINCIPLE

AT MASENG COMMUNICATIONS, SHE IS

PREPARED REPUBLICAN, SENATE AND

CONGRESSIONAL AND GUBERNATORIAL

CANDIDATES FOR DEBATES AND

WORKED WITH PRESIDENT RONALD

REAGAN.

THANK YOU BOTH FOR JOINING US.

ED LEE WHAT DO YOU THINK JOE

BIDEN'S STRATEGY WILL BE TONIGHT

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?

>> I THINK THAT JOE BIDEN IS

SETUP TO HAVE A REALLY GOOD

NIGHT.

ONE OF THE THINGS I'M LOOKING

FOR IS TO SHOW UP WITH ENERGY

THAT SOMEONE WHO IS EXCITED

ABOUT BEING THERE.

COUNTERS THE NARRATIVE THAT HE

IS SLEEPY AND CAN'T STAY AWAKE.

AND THAT THE ABILITY TO JUST

ENJOY THE MOMENT.

AND EXUDE A PRESENCE THAT HE IS

QUITE PRESIDENTIAL AND READY FOR

THE MOMENT AND EXCITED TO BE ON

STAGE WITH OUR CURRENT

PRESIDENT.

>> AND MARI MASENG WILL, WHAT DO

YOU EXPECT THE PRESIDENT'S

STRATEGY TO BE?

>> I EXPECT HIM TO BE ON THE

OFFENSIVE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.

AND I EXPECT HIM TO ALSO ENJOY

THE EXPERIENCE.

HE IS A TV GUY OR THINKS OF

HIMSELF AS A TV GUY.

WHEN I COACH PEOPLE I TELL THEM

IT IS A GAME IT'S GOING TO BE

FUN AND THEN WHEN THEY GET ON

STAGE AND THEY ARE PREPARED THEY

DO HAVE A GOOD TIME.

AND THE AUDIENCE WHICH IS THE

AUDIENCE WATCHING ON TELEVISION

NOT IN THE HALL, THE AUDIENCE

WILL PICK UP ON THAT.

YOU WILL SEE IT IN BODY LANGUAGE

AND TONE AND FACIAL EXPRESSIONS.

AND I EXPECT HE IS GOING TO DO

THAT.

I THINK BOTH OF THESE DEBATERS

ARE VERY GOOD AT THAT AND VERY

GOOD AT BEING ON THE OFFENSIVE.

>> ED LEE MOST PEOPLE DON'T

THINK OF FUN WHEN THEY THINK OF

A DEBATE CERTAINLY AT THIS

LEVEL.

WHAT ARE THE POTENTIAL PITFALLS

FOR THE TWO INDICATES?

>> ONE OF THE --

CANDIDATES.

>> ONE OF THE PITFALLS FOR

PRESIDENT TRUMP WAS THAT HE GETS

A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF ENERGY

OUT OF THE CROWD.

THAT HE IS A TV GUY AN

ENTERTAINER AND THE ABILITY FOR

HIM TO SHOW UP IN A SPARSE

AUDIENCE AND MAINTAIN A LEVEL OF

ENERGY AND BEING ABLE TO PRETEND

AS IF THERE IS A CROWD AND THAT

HE IS NOT BORED THAT HE DOESN'T

LOOK LIKE HE IS LETHARGIC OR

STRESSED I THINK THAT IS A

SIGNIFICANT DOWNSIDE RISK THAT

PRESIDENT TRUMP IS A BRILLIANT

AND UNDERSTANDING WHAT THE

AUDIENCE NEEDS AT THAT

PARTICULAR MOMENT AND ADJUSTING

TO THAT.

THE LACK OF A CROWD IS SOMETHING

THAT I HOPE THAT HIS CAMPAIGN

ADVISERS ARE PREPPING HIM TO

DEAL WITH AND NOT HAVING THAT

CALL AND RESPONSE RELATIONSHIP

THAT HE IS USED TO HAVING WITH

THE AUDIENCES THAT SHOW UP FOR

HIS RALLIES AND OTHER EVENTS.

THE --

>> I WAS GOING TO CLARIFY UNDER

THE DEBATE RULES ONLY 75 PEOPLE

WILL BE IN PHYSICAL PRESENCE.

MARI MASENG WILL WHAT DO YOU

THINK THE DOWNSIDES OR THE

PITFALLS MIGHT BE BE FOR EITHER

OF THE CANDIDATES AND I WILL GET

BACK TO YOU, ED.

>> WELL, I THINK THAT THE

BIGGEST HANDICAP FOR THE FORMER

VICE-PRESIDENT HE HAS NOT BEEN

CAMPAIGNING THE WAY TRUMP HAS

BEEN CAMPAIGNING.

AND EVERYONE I'VE EVER WORKED

FOR HAS GOTTEN BETTER AT

CAMPAIGNING AND THEREFORE BETTER

AT THE DEBATES THE FARTHER ALONG

THEY GET INTO IT.

YOU GET ON A ROLL YOU HAVE

THINGS THAT YOU ARE USED TO

SAYING OVER AND OVER AGAIN.

THE MUSCLE MEMORY IN YOUR MOUTH.

AND HE HAS NOT DONE THAT.

I KNOW HE HAS BEEN PREPPING IN A

PROFESSIONAL MANNER AND THAT

WHEN HE TAKES DEBATES SERIOUSLY

FOR EXAMPLE, HE SCHOOLED ME ON

DEBATES WITH HIS DEBATE WITH

PAUL RYAN.

HIT IT OUT OF THE PARK.

HE WAS TERRIFIC.

AND HE MAINTAINED CONTROL ALMOST

THE ENTIRE TIME.

BUT THAT WAS NOT IN A PANDEMIC

YEAR.

THAT WAS JOHN NOTHDURFT IN THIS

THAT WAS NOT IN A PANDEMIC YEAR.

>> TO WHOM WHEN YOU WERE

REFERRING THAT HE SCHOOLED YOU?

>> JOE BIDEN.

>> HE WAS INCREDIBLY --

I DON'T KNOW IN ED AGREES BUT

THAT DEBATE WAS A WORK OF ART.

>> ED LEE YOU WERE ABOUT TO MAKE

MORE POINT?

>> I AGREE WITH MARCHI AND THE

PAUL RYAN AND THE JOE BIDEN

DEBATES ONE OF THE THINGS HE DID

WELL HE WAS IN THE MOMENT.

IT FELT LIKE HE WAS PART OF A

CONVERSATION WITH PAUL RYAN AND

ONE OF THE FEARS THAT I HAVE

ABOUT JOE BIDEN AT THIS MOMENT

IS THAT HE IS SPENT A

SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME

PREPARING FOR THE DEBATE INSTEAD

OF PREPARING TO HAVE A

SPONTANEOUS AND I IMPROMPTU

CONVERSATION WITH CHRIS WALLACE

AND THE AUDIENCE.

I WOULD FEAR IF I WAS THE

CAMPAIGN THAT HE IS TOO

PROGRAMMED AT THE MOMENT.

BECAUSE WHAT MARI MASENG WILL

IDENTIFIED IS THE VALUE OF

DEVELOPING THAT MUSCLE MEMORY.

AND I SHARE HER CONCERNS OF

WHETHER OR NOT THAT IS SOMETHING

THAT JOE BIDEN HAS BEEN ABLE TO

DEVELOP WITH THE LACK OF

CAMPAIGNING IN THE TRADITIONAL

SENSE.

>> WELL, THE CONVERSATION WILL

FOCUS ON SIX TOPICS, TRUMP AND

BIDEN'S RECORDS THE SUPREME

COURT, COVID-19, THE ECONOMY,

RACE AND VIOLENCE IN THE U.S.

CITIES AND THE INTEGRITY OF THE

ELECTION.

MARI MASENG WILL IS THIS AGENDA

FAVOR ONE CANDIDATE OVER THE

OTHER?

>> I WAS LOOKING AT IT TODAY AND

THINK TO GO MIGHT FAVOR TRUMP

BECAUSE IF HE CAN POINT TO HIS

ECONOMIC RECORD WHICH WAS

INCREDIBILITY ONE OF THE BEST

ECONOMIES WE'VE EVER HAD UNTIL

THE PANDEMIC.

AND TRY TO TURN THAT INTO HOPE

FOR AMERICA IN THE FUTURE.

VOTERS DON'T REALLY CARE ABOUT

WHAT HE DID FOR THEM YESTERDAY

THEY CARE WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO

DO FOR ME TOMORROW.

IF HE CAN LEVERAGE THAT AND BEST

ABLE TO BRING US BACK INTO A

VIBRANT ECONOMY ON THE ONE HAND

AND NOT KNOCK THE LEGS OUT FROM

UNDER BIDEN BY PINNING HIM AS

SOMEONE WHO IS GOING TO STRANGLE

YOU WITH REGULATIONS AND TAXES

AND ECONOMIC PROGRAMS THAT LED

TO ONE OF THE --

SOME OF THE DIFFICULTIES WE HAD

OVER THE OBAMA YEARS, I THINK

THAT WILL BE A BIG VICTORY.

THAT IS WHAT REPUBLICAN VOTERS

ARE LOOKING FOR BUT MOST

IMPORTANTLY THAT IS WHAT THE

SWING VOTERS WHO MIGHT SUPPORT A

REPUBLICAN IN THIS --

THAT'S WHAT THEY'RE LOOKING FOR.

I THINK BIDEN IS GOING TO FOCUS

ON THE CORONAVIRUS HE THINKS

THAT IS A BIG PLUS.

BUT FROM THE POLLS I LOOK AT

MOST AMERICANS DO NOT PUT THAT

AT THE TOP OF THEIR ISSUE LIST.

DEMOCRATS DO.

AND I THINK THE WORRY FOR BIDEN

ON THIS ISSUE LIST IS THAT HE

WILL CONTINUE SPEAKING TO HIS

PARTY RATHER THAN TO THE SWING

VOTERS THAT HE CAN KEEP FROM

GOING BACK TO TRUMP.

>> AND I'M AFRAID WE WERE OUT OF