NBC News: “President Donald Trump has not held a single mock debate session, and has no plans to stage a formal practice round, as he readies for his first faceoff with Joe Biden in less than three weeks, according to multiple people familiar with the discussions. The president has dismissed the typical debate preparations he participated in four years ago, joking to aides and allies that he’s been preparing for debates since he was born. His ability to fire back at an opponent in real time, he’s argued, ‘isn’t something you have to practice.'”

“The lack of formal preparation is notable given how much emphasis Trump’s team has put on the debates. His allies have pushed for more of them beyond the scheduled three. And his re-election campaign was so concerned about early voting that it even pushed the Commission on Presidential Debates to schedule a debate earlier than the first one Sept. 29, but that idea was quickly rejected. Not all of the president’s allies think his casual approach is a wise strategy. Privately, some of them are expressing concern that the president’s overconfidence could backfire. In particular, they’re worried that Trump appears to be banking on a Biden misstep in the first 2020 debate; all the three debates are scheduled for 90 minutes each. They said Trump has repeatedly told aides that he’s not worried about debating Biden because the former vice president is likely to have a gaffe moment or stutter. Biden had a severe stutter as a child that he overcame.”