Letter: Presidential debate is a high-risk gamble for Biden

Perhaps unlike Edward Luce (Opinion, June 20), I am old enough to remember the Carter-Reagan debate of 1980. Jimmy Carter was widely understood to be a nearly certain loser despite deceptive public polling. Indeed, Carter campaign strategists agreed to debate only because they were desperate. The debate may have converted a likely loss into a landslide but it did not change the outcome. Similarly, the Biden campaign would not have given Donald Trump a prime time nationwide platform for his election lies unless they were in serious danger of losing otherwise. Joe Biden’s position may be less dire than Carter’s but this debate remains a high-risk gamble.

Robert Denham
Oakland, CA, US