Consider this from NPR: NPR

It may be hard to remember from where we sit today, but when this presidential campaign began, it looked a lot like the last one.

Everything sounded familiar, down to the candidates. There was Trump talking about bringing back honor and Biden wanting to restore normalcy to a good and decent United States.

Former President Donald Trump and incumbent President Joe Biden became the presumptive nominees for their parties in March, making it the first presidential rematch since 1956.

We all know that sequels are rarely more interesting than the original, and many were frustrated or indifferent to what seemed like a repeat of what we had already seen before.

Anyone with a pulse knows that the past year has been anything but predictable.

And while we can’t say what the outcome of this election will be, we can say that Americans have just lived through the most dramatic, eventful, unexpected presidential campaign of our lifetime.

You are reading Consider this newsletter, which unpacks a big news item every day. Register here to have it delivered to your inbox, and listen to more from Consider this podcast.

A last minute replacement

Questions surrounding President Biden’s suitability to serve in the Oval Office for a second term had already been circulating for months following his acceptance of the Democratic nomination.

But the June debate in Atlanta between Biden and Trump featured a performance from Biden that sent Democrats into a tailspin. Members of the Democratic Party began calling for Biden to drop out. But the president was resolute.

Weeks later, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi weighed in with an open conclusion:

“It’s up to the president to decide if he wants to run. We all encourage him to make that decision now that time is running out.”

Then, while Democrats were wringing their hands, a major event rocked the Trump campaign when a would-be assassin took aim at the former president while he was on stage at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A bullet grazed Trump’s ear while one attendee was killed and two more were left critically injured.

As Republicans rallied fervently around their leader, wearing earflaps to show their support, Biden was sidelined with COVID.

Finally, on July 21, the president posted on social media that he was ending his campaign.

He offered his quote “full support and endorsement” to Vice President Kamala Harris as the party’s nominee, cementing the decision in a formal speech two days later.

A post-Biden race

Harris would have the shortest runway of any presidential campaign in modern history. She had to introduce herself to voters, explain a political agenda, draw a contrast to Trump and also choose a candidate.

On August 16 in Philadelphia, she announced her choice, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D).

A few days later, the Democratic convention in Chicago came with a rush of adrenaline as the party celebrated the first woman of color to lead the Democratic ticket.

The first and only debate between the two presidential candidates came on September 10 in New York City.

They debated political positions – including the economy.

Trump had one position:

“The polls are saying 80 and 85 and even 90 percent that the Trump economy was great, that their (Democrat) economy was terrible.”

Harris had another:

“Donald Trump has no plan for you. And when you look at his economic plan, it’s all about tax cuts for the richest people. I’m offering what I describe as an opportunity economy.”

Trump also made a false claim about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, saying they were eating people’s pets.

That led to weeks of threats and violence against the Springfield community.

And just five days later, Trump was playing golf when his life was threatened again when Secret Service agents spotted a gunman lurking at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.

He didn’t fire and Trump wasn’t hurt.

There is of course more to tell. Listen to the full episode of Consider this for a refresher on why your blood pressure has been so unusually high for the past year.

This episode was produced by Kathryn Fink. It was edited by Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.