Harris Sweeps Floor with Tired Old Man
An unambiguous win--not even close.
Kamala Harris is an experienced prosecutor, a job that requires intelligence, an ability to master facts, and a temperament immune to intimidation. That is why I knew in advance that Kamala Harris would “win” Tuesday night’s debate.
Harris did not disappoint. She might not be the world’s best debater, but she took every punch Trump threw at her without blinking. And she knocked Trump down several times, causing Trump to lose his cool and “let his inner Trump out.”
I jotted down a short list of questions to prepare for the debate. During the debate, I wrote down my answers. Here they are:
When was it clear that Harris had won the debate?
Before the debate began, Harris confidently approached Trump, meeting him on his side of the stage, and introduced herself. I could hear it: “Kamala Harris.” Trump had no means of avoiding the handshake. Harris then calmly walked to her lectern. That act of confidence, class, and poise set the tone for the rest of the evening.
Did Harris look presidential?
Yes, indisputably.
How about Trump?
For the most part, yes. For most of the debate, Trump was calm and controlled. He stuck to generally non-controversial talking points. But he looked old and tired and, to my eyes, a bit nervous. He was hoping that Harris would win the debate for him by self-destructing. That did not happen.
What did I like least about Harris’ performance?
At times, she was too polite. When she confronted Trump with his views on abortion and his coddling of White supremacists (after Charlottesville), and, most prominently, when she noted that attendees walked out of his rallies out of boredom, Trump lost it. Harris could have hit harder in the debate but opted for civility.
What was Trump’s worst moment?
Trump went off the rails on immigrants eating cats and dogs in Springfield, Ohio. That claim, made initially by J.D. Vance, has been refuted, but Trump couldn’t control himself. When he ranted about pet-eating, he looked and sounded ridiculous.
How did the moderators do?
I’d give the ABC team of David Muir and Linsey Davis an A+. David Muir was in complete control of the debate. He also competently identified Trump's misstatements without sounding like a member of the DNC.
What mistakes did Trump make?
The first mistake was agreeing to debate Harris. There were several others. Trump, for example, ripped over his feet when asked whether he still believes he won the 2020 election. He does. Score one for Harris.
Trump also sounded dangerous when he claimed, in essence, that he had nothing to do with the January 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol. He blamed the riot on Nancy Pelosi and the mayor of the District of Columbia.
How did Harris handle the abortion issue?
Brilliantly. Trump refused to say he would not sign a national abortion ban. He attempted to deflect a discussion of Roe v. Wade by claiming Democrats supported late-term abortion and “executing” babies after their birth.
How about name-calling? Will Trump use the term “Comrade Kamala?”
Trump did not use that term, but here is what he did say:
She’s a Marxist. Everybody knows she’s a Marxist. Her father’s a Marxist professor in economics. And he taught her well. But when you look at what she’s done to our country and when you look at these millions and millions of people that are pouring into our country monthly where it’s I believe 21 million people, not the 15 that people say, and I think it’s a lot higher than the 21. That’s bigger than New York state. Pouring in. And just look at what they’re doing to our country. They’re criminals. Many of these people coming in are criminals.
How would this statement be judged in a high school debate?
Did Trump land any punches?
Yes. He raised the issue of Harris’ changing position on the Keystone pipeline and a few other issues.
He accused her of flip-flopping on issues like the Keystone pipeline and stealing his ideas. At one point, Trump said he thought about sending her a MAGA hat.
Did Trump sound “unhinged” during the debate?
At one point, yes. Consider this exchange:
DAVID MUIR: Let me just ask, though, why did you try to kill that bill [a bi-partisan border control bill early in 2024] and successfully so? That would have put thousands of additional agents and officers on the border.
FORMER PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: First let me respond as to the rallies. She said people start leaving. People don’t go to her rallies. There’s no reason to go. And the people that do go, she’s busing them in and paying them to be there. And then showing them in a different light. So, she can’t talk about that. People don’t leave my rallies. We have the biggest rallies, the most incredible rallies in the history of politics. That’s because people want to take their country back. Our country is being lost. We’re a failing nation. And it happened three and a half years ago. And what, what’s going on here, you’re going to end up in World War 3, just to go into another subject. What they have done to our country by allowing these millions and millions of people to come into our country. And look at what’s happening to the towns all over the United States. And a lot of towns don’t want to talk — not going to be Aurora or Springfield. A lot of towns don’t want to talk about it because they’re so embarrassed by it. In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating — they’re eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is what’s happening in our country. And it’s a shame. As far as rallies are concerned, as far — the reason they go is they like what I say. They want to bring our country back. They want to make America great again. It’s a very simple phrase. Make America great again. She’s destroying this country. And if she becomes president, this country doesn’t have a chance of success. Not only success. We’ll end up being Venezuela on steroids.
Did Harris sound confused, intimidated, or uninformed at the debate?
No, not once.
The bottom line.
Harris won. She swept the floor with a tired old man. Read the full transcript here.
Will Trump agree to another debate?
I don’t think so, but Trump isn’t that smart.
© 2024 John Dean, all rights reserved.
What Harris did to Trump last night should be considered elder abuse. She was magnificent.