#Why Nancy Pelosi’s nervous about Joe Biden debating Donald Trump

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Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi speaks to reporters at the Capitol today.
AP Photo/Scott Applewhite

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi just became the latest, and highest-profile, Democrat to give nominee Joe Biden a vote of no-confidence — by urging him to dodge the normal debates against President Trump.

“I don’t think there should be any debates,” she told reporters Thursday, completely out of the blue.

She claimed President Trump will make any debate “an exercise in skullduggery.” But it sounds like she doesn’t think Biden is up to the task.

To his credit, Biden later said he’ll show for the three scheduled debates starting Sept. 29. But his campaign still rejects Trump’s request for an added, earlier debate to serve the many Americans who will vote early.

And the chorus of those urging Biden to stay off the stage has reached a roar, with Clinton-era White House Press Secretary Joe Lockhart, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, liberal éminence grise Elizabeth Drew and NeverTrumper Bill Kristol all opposing the traditional debates.

We’re not surprised Biden’s supporters are terrified voters will question his performance. Some of the 77-year-old’s craziest recent comments — such as declaring that African Americans don’t have a diversity of opinion — plainly exceed his past gaffes.

What’s surprising is how bold Biden’s biggest backers are in going public with their reservations about his ability. If they don’t trust him on a debate stage, why should voters trust him as their representative on the world stage?