A speech by Donald Trumpin which Joe Biden appears only once? Until recently, this was an utterly absurd idea. And yet Trump spoke for over an hour on Thursday night without mentioning the name of his successor.

You might think he wanted to anticipate the facts. Rumors in Washington DC suggest that Biden could withdraw his candidacy this weekend. But Trump also makes no mention of Kamala Harris, who is considered the Democrats’ most likely replacement and with whom he could soon face off in a duel.