ANALYSIS – Hubris? Maybe. And, yes, I understand that former President Donald Trump has been debating for years now, as a candidate and president and now candidate again. He should know what he is doing.
But, that being said, every opponent is different. And so are the circumstances.
And this time, his first, and possibly only debate with the last-minute “pinch hitter” Democrat nominee Vice President “Kackling” Kamala Harris, Trump’s lack of adequate preparation, and discipline hurt him badly.
The Trump–Harris Debate attracted more than 67 million TV viewers, and who knows how many online, or on social media. Some sources claim about 24 million watched online and streaming platforms.
It was the most watched presidential debate in 16 years. And as I pointed out earlier, the ABC moderators were the most biased I’d ever seen. But that was to be expected. As were the attacks and tactics Kamala used.
And Trump did hit Harris a few times and made some great points. But overall, it wasn’t good for the ex-president.
It’s a shame Trump didn’t do what he did with Joe Biden. Most viewers said he lost this debate. At best he didn’t succeed in knocking Harris out.
So, could his disappointing performance have tanked Trump’s reelection? I hope not, and it may not have.
Still, in the aftermath, Republican pollster Frank Luntz has predicted that Trump will lose the election after what he described as the former president’s “contemptuous” debate performance against Harris.
“It was a pretty negative performance—pretty pessimistic, cynical, contemptuous,” Luntz added. “And I think that this will cost him, yes.”
Maybe Luntz is overstating things, but the debate is having a short-term effect and will tighten an already tight race.
And we should note that The New York Times, no Trump fan, wrote: “Pundits Said Harris Won the Debate. Undecided Voters Weren’t So Sure,” adding, “Voters said the vice president talked about a sweeping vision to fix the country’s most stubborn problems. But they wanted the fine print.”
So, not all was great for Harris, especially among undecided voters.
Meanwhile, Newsweek also notes:
According to previous CNN post-debate flash polls, Democrats may have to hold off any celebrations.
In 2012, post-debate CNN polling found that viewers thought Republican candidate Mitt Romney had won the first debate against Barack Obama—after which his standing in the polls rose—with 67 percent of respondents choosing him as the winner. Romney ultimately lost the election by a 4-point margin.
In 2016, CNN polling showed that Clinton came out on top in all three debates against Trump, by almost an identical margin as Harris in the first debate. Sixty-two percent of respondents thought Clinton won the first debate, while 27 percent chose Trump.
In both cases, the loser of the debate won the election.
Still, it didn’t have to be this way.
As the Washington Examiner reported:
Even though Trump continues to proclaim he won the debate “by a lot,” some of his most loyal supporters believe he missed opportunities to define Harris and took her bait when she attempted to knock him off-script.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) called Trump’s performance a “disaster” and told the Bulwark his debate team should be fired. Trump held informal policy sessions with a handful of advisers, including Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who once challenged Harris on the Democratic debate stage in 2019.
Chris Christie, a former Trump ally-turned-critic who has helped advise him for previous debates, said it was clear the former president wasn’t in the company of an experienced team.
“Whoever did debate prep for Donald Trump should be fired. He was not good tonight at all,” the former New Jersey governor said on ABC News immediately following the debate, calling him “unprepared.”
Trump should have been better prepared and more disciplined. Much of that can be blamed on his advisers, but Trump also does what Trump wants to do.
I hope he will do much better in any future debate against Harris.
But Trump will have to prepare and stay on point. He has done it before with Biden. He can do it again.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
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She had all the perfect answers before the questions were asked.
That’s called cheating. It was not a debate by any means. It was a question and answer forum
Disservice to the voting American public