Trump struggles to use power of presidency to counter Biden

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump spent the week of the Democratic National Convention forsaking what has historically been an incumbent’s greatest advantage: He's in the job his challenger wants.

Traditionally, an incumbent would devote the week of his rival’s convention to bolstering his own credentials as a leader. But rather than focusing on his command of the job or using its power, Trump hit the campaign trail, where he flouted his own administration’s pandemic safety guidance and expressed gratitude for support from adherents to an extremist conspiracy theory, QAnon.

It was a consequence of Trump’s unwillingness to share the limelight, but also a necessary attempt to shift the November campaign from a referendum on his job performance to a choice between himself and Joe Biden. Ten weeks out from Election Day, as the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged Trump’s reelection chances, aides have recognized that a vote on his presidency is not one he is likely to win.

Acting “presidential” — holding briefings and leading negotiations — won’t suit him, in the view of many aides, if his presidency is what is holding him back.

Trump is not hoping to win over converts. Instead his reelection strategy hinges on his ability to animate his most loyal supporters with fears of a Democratic administration, motivating them to show up at the polls and attempting to turn away moderates who might be leaning toward voting for Joe Biden.

“Where is it written that you have to stay home and let your opponent attack you for a week?” said Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh. “The president is a fighter and one who fights back, and that’s what he was doing.”

The dynamic will be on display next week as Trump prepares for his own convention. While he is set to rely on the trappings of...