It’s uncommon for a sitting U.S. president to hunker down for a full week’s worth of election planning in the wooded retreat at Camp David.
But that’s where Joe Biden’s been.
Then again, there’s never been a presidential debate quite like the one he’s been preparing for, scheduled for 9 p.m. ET Thursday night.
Two unusually unpopular candidates, Biden and Donald Trump, locked in a close race, will meet in an abnormally early debate, three months sooner than they’re typically held.
It is a unique chance for voters to assess them for long, unimpeded stretches — Biden requested, and Trump accepted, rules to limit heckling and interruptions.
Trailing slightly in most surveys, Biden appears keen on resetting the trajectory of the race by proposing a debate this early, under this format.
With polls having barely budged a point or two since last year, this is regarded as a rare scheduled event with the potential to shift the campaign.
“The most important 90 …