Cemetery visit will close out Biden trip to France

9/6/2024 13:34

        President Joe Biden will close out his trip to France by paying his respects at an American military cemetery that Donald Trump notably skipped visiting when he was president, hoping his final stop on Sunday will lay draw the stakes of the November election in stark relief.
        
        It's a fitting end to five days in which Trump was an unspoken yet unavoidable presence. On the surface, the trip marked the 80th anniversary of D-Day and celebrated the alliance between the United States and France. But during an election year when Trump has called into question fundamental understandings about America's global role, Biden has embraced his Republican predecessor - and would-be successor - as a latent foil.
        
        Every ode to the transatlantic partnership was a reminder that Trump could upend those relationships. Each reference to democracy stood a counterpoint to his rival's efforts to overturn a presidential election.