Trump to hit Biden's family ties in last debate

US President Donald Trump is expected to come out swinging in Thursday's (Oct. 22) final presidential debate with Democratic rival Joe Biden to try to close a gap in opinion polls before an election 12 days away.

Trump needs to score some hits in the televised encounter to steady a campaign that is struggling, in part due to his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 222,000 people in the United States.

Trump, a Republican, trails former vice president Biden significantly in national polls ahead of Election Day, November 3, though the contest is much tighter in some battleground states where the election will likely be decided.

Relatively few voters have yet to make up their minds, and Trump's window to influence the outcome may be closing. A record 47 million Americans have already cast ballots, eclipsing total early voting from the 2016 election, ahead of the debate in Nashville, Tennessee.

Trump's campaign signaled that the often pugnacious president would attack Biden for not accomplishing more during his nearly half-century in public service and zero in on what Trump, 74, alleges were corrupt practices by the Biden family.

Aides of Biden, 77, said he needs to deliver a disciplined performance to appeal to the undecided voters and not to allow Trump to get under his skin with attacks on his family, especially his son Hunter.

One Biden adviser said aides want him to counter Trump without seeming un-presidential. He is expected to again bash Trump's handling of the pandemic, arguing that it has had a disproportionate economic impact on low-wage workers.

Several states, including the election swing state of Ohio, reported record single-day increases in Covid-19 infections on Thursday, evidence that the pandemic is accelerating anew.

September's contentious first debate between the pair was watched by at least 73 million viewers. Trump passed up another planned debate last week after it was switched to a virtual format following his Covid-19 diagnosis.

(Source: Reuters)