HOME > AFP-JIJI PRESS NEWS JOURNAL > Article
Bogey men-- Trump and Biden snipe and snarl about golf
A bad tempered and unedifying US presidential debate between the two oldest candidates ever to run for office degenerated into a squabble over golfing prowess on Thursday.
The first head-to-head in an already painfully long campaign saw 81-year-old Joe Biden and his 78-year-old challenger Donald Trump trade insults and accusations for 90 minutes on prime time television.
There was name-calling: You're the worst! No, YOU'RE the worst!
There were accusations: You're a whiner!
And then they fought over their golf handicaps.
He can't hit a ball 50 yards, said Trump, on one of the few occasions the two men directly addressed each other.
He challenged me to a golf match. He can't hit a ball 50 yards.
Trump's own vitality was never in question, he boasted, insisting I'm in as good a shape as I was years ago.
Not to be outdone over his putting prowess, Biden insisted he was game on the green.
I'd be happy to have a driving contest, he said. I got my handicap when I was the vice president down to a six.
Trump scoffed.
A six handicap? he snorted. I've seen your swing. I know your swing.
The exchange came towards the end of the CNN-hosted debate, which had started without the handshake that is customary on such occasions and gone downhill from there.
The animosity between the two men was palpable, with Biden taking an early swing at a man he said had the morals of an alley cat.
How many billions of dollars do you owe in civil penalties for molesting a woman in public... for having sex with a porn star... while your wife was pregnant, he said, in reference to Trump's alleged dalliance with adult film actress Stormy Daniels.
The Republican former president again denied adultery, but a New York jury found him guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up hush-money payments to her.
Trump wasted few chances to hammer home his claim that Biden was weak and not a leader.
He also took aim at Biden's perceived mental frailties, an issue that polls repeatedly show voters are concerned about.
I took two tests, cognitive tests. I aced them, both of them, as you know, we made it public, he said.
He took none. I'd like to see him take one, just one, a real easy one, like go through the first five questions. He couldn't do it.
(2024/06/28 18:54)
Click Here for Japanese TranslationAFP-JIJI PRESS NEWS JOURNAL
- 06/28 20:44 Whistles at dawn-- birdsong duels enthral Afghans
- 06/28 20:40 Delhi airport roof collapses months after Modi inaugurates project
- 06/28 20:39 IOC invite 39 Russian, Belarus athletes to compete as neutrals at Olympics
- 06/28 18:54 Bogey men-- Trump and Biden snipe and snarl about golf
- 06/28 18:30 World champion Verstappen confirms staying at Red Bull
- 06/28 18:18 Murray not giving up on Wimbledon farewell after surgery
- 06/27 18:42 Some like it not-- LA bars demolition of Marilyn Monroe home
- 06/27 18:40 Australia swim queen Campbell retires after missing out on Paris
- 06/27 18:37 Denmark seeks to take the wind out of foreign flags
- 06/27 18:35 Morgan omitted from USA women's Olympics football squad
- 06/27 17:14 US jails Honduran ex-president for 45 years on drug charges
- 06/27 17:12 Tens of thousands collected for 'honest' Dutch homeless man
- 06/26 20:12 Ukrainians risk lives to flee draft via icy Romanian pass
- 06/26 20:10 S. Korea administrative robot defunct after apparent suicide
- 06/26 18:08 US warns Israel over Lebanon as UN sounds alarm on Gaza
- 06/26 18:06 Kenya's Ruto vows 'full' response after deadly anti-tax protests
- 06/26 16:51 Phelps, Schmitt call for WADA reform in US hearing
- 06/26 16:50 Russia to block dozens of EU media outlets in 'retaliatory' move
- 06/25 18:59 Egypt tomb find may shed light on ancient diseases-- ministry
- 06/25 18:58 Gaza officials say Israeli strike kills 10 relatives of Hamas chief
- 06/25 17:55 Probe highlights 'attack on press freedom' in Gaza war
- 06/25 17:45 Hungary's Varga set for surgery on 'multiple' facial fractures
- 06/25 17:01 Families of October 7 attack victims sue UNRWA over 'helping' Hamas
- 06/25 16:57 Infamous Bangladesh hangman dies after turning writer, TikTok star
- 06/24 20:13 EU says Apple's App Store breaches bloc's digital rules
- 06/24 18:27 Euro 2024 security bulked after pitch invaders aim for Ronaldo selfies
- 06/24 18:25 Israel PM says 'intense' phase of Gaza war nearing end
- 06/24 18:14 Deaths from Indian toxic alcohol rise to more than 50
- 06/24 18:08 Blue Jays outfielder Martinez suspended 80 games for drugs violation
- 06/24 18:04 Gaza health officials say 24 killed in Israeli strikes
- 06/21 18:10 Mines, unexploded ordnance a daily menace for Afghanistan's children
- 06/21 18:06 England wary of 'bold' former boss Jones in Japan Test
- 06/21 18:03 Chinese sailors wield knives, axe in disputed sea clash with Philippines
- 06/21 17:13 Steve Cooper named manager of Premier League Leicester City
- 06/21 17:12 Actor Donald Sutherland dead at age 88
- 06/21 17:11 Lakers agree to coaching deal with TV analyst Redick-- reports