Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), a Republican who is close to Trump, said he is encouraging the former president to do another debate, in part because he thinks Harris should have to answer “a tough question” — which he didn’t think she had to do tonight.
“The moderators sucked,” he said. “I thought it was horrible. It was awful.” Graham said he told Trump that one of his strongest moments was his closing argument — challenging Harris on why she hasn’t done more to change Americans’ lives over the past three and a half years.
“I think the president thinks he achieved his goal tonight of challenging her,” Graham said, “that you [Harris] own this. And you talk about all the things you’re going to do, why should we believe you?'”
He said he thinks Trump is open to another debate.
It's funny to me (but not surprising) that they are going after the moderators. They let trump take over the mic several times. I was kind of pissed off about it because he would just start talking and they would let him go. Harris did a few times but they seemed to push her off...partly because she was courteous and trump is a fucking idiot she would stop talking.
I haven't seen talking time stats yet...curious to see what those look like. Maybe I'm wrong but it seemed like he talked a lot more than her. And maybe that was her plan?
I actually didn't think that part was that bad. They said they would get a 1 minute rebuttal. It looked like to me Trump would just take that 1 minute without waiting to be prompted to respond, so it might have looked like he was just going off. Or he'd ask for a rebuttal before moving on and they'd grant it to him. The time seemed fair and within the rules that they set.
he actually spoke 5 minutes more than her....he was going outside of the boundaries for sure. They were giving him leeway
Remember the Thomas Nine !! (10/02/2018) The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago 2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy 2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE) 2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston 2020: Oakland, Oakland:2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana 2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville 2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
So again with we have a really good healthcare plan or several plans we’ve talked about! Really so since 2016 till now you’ve been working on a plan/plans for healthcare and you can’t name it? Maybe his under the impression that the plan is for the whole world?
He’s never had a plan for healthcare. He’s not working on a plan. The Affordable Care Act or Obamacare is terrible if you’ve ever looked at one of the exchanges. It’s not affordable for most. But the websites are set up and available.
As someone who has been on it for years that is false. Also...as someone who prepares about 700 individual tax returns each year I can tell you that the marketplace plans are perfect for low and middle income people. The subsidies they receive for premiums make their plans affordable. For those of us that don't qualify for subsidies I can tell you that the premiums suck but they wouldn't be any better without the marketplace. My insurance premium now is not much more than I was paying Anthem 20 years ago prior to the marketplace.
I’ll take your word then. When I checked for myself, the premiums seemed crazy high but my income was probably way too high to get subsidies then.
they are high...but they aren't any worse then before
What did you end up doing? It seems like there are still some plans outside of the marketplace that seem better if you don't have any pre-existing conditions, etc.
I have a few clients that stuck with their Anthem plans and their premiums are ridiculous.
It's better where I am now. But for the 10 years I lived in Colorado it was terrible. I'd pay $1000 and my employer would pay about $1200 a month for premiums. When I'd look into the market place I'd see comparable coverage for about $1200-1400, but my employer wouldn't contribute towards it it we switched. And I'm not sure if I'd even qualify for the market place since I had employer sponsored benefits anyway. If I could get market place prices through our employer, it wouldn't have been so bad. But that's not how it worked.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), a Republican who is close to Trump, said he is encouraging the former president to do another debate, in part because he thinks Harris should have to answer “a tough question” — which he didn’t think she had to do tonight.
“The moderators sucked,” he said. “I thought it was horrible. It was awful.” Graham said he told Trump that one of his strongest moments was his closing argument — challenging Harris on why she hasn’t done more to change Americans’ lives over the past three and a half years.
“I think the president thinks he achieved his goal tonight of challenging her,” Graham said, “that you [Harris] own this. And you talk about all the things you’re going to do, why should we believe you?'”
He said he thinks Trump is open to another debate.
It's funny to me (but not surprising) that they are going after the moderators. They let trump take over the mic several times. I was kind of pissed off about it because he would just start talking and they would let him go. Harris did a few times but they seemed to push her off...partly because she was courteous and trump is a fucking idiot she would stop talking.
I haven't seen talking time stats yet...curious to see what those look like. Maybe I'm wrong but it seemed like he talked a lot more than her. And maybe that was her plan?
I actually didn't think that part was that bad. They said they would get a 1 minute rebuttal. It looked like to me Trump would just take that 1 minute without waiting to be prompted to respond, so it might have looked like he was just going off. Or he'd ask for a rebuttal before moving on and they'd grant it to him. The time seemed fair and within the rules that they set.
Harris spoke 23 times for 37 minutes. Trump spoke 39 times for 42 minutes.
They always seemed to let him get the last word....which worked to his detriment because he is an aging lunatic.
If it was any other elderly person you'd feel bad for them that this strong woman was dominating him.
"MAGA AGA" LOL
Spectrum 10/27/09; New Orleans JazzFest 5/1/10; Made in America 9/2/12; Phila, PA 10/21/13; Phila, PA 10/22/13; Baltimore Arena 10/27/13; Phila, PA 4/28/16; Phila, PA 4/29/16; Fenway Park 8/7/16; Fenway Park 9/2/18; Asbury Park 9/18/21; Camden 9/14/22; Las Vegas 5/16/24; Las Vegas 5/18/24; Phila, PA 9/7/24; Phila, PA 9/9/24; Baltimore Arena 9/12/24
Tres Mtns - TLA 3/23/11; EV - Tower Theatre 6/25/11; Temple of the Dog - Tower Theatre 11/5/16
So I can't stomach Trump ever, so couldn't watch the debate. Do you all truly think Harris mopped the floor with him, or is it bias talking? Of course I would find it hard to believe he wasn't clobbered, but since I honestly can't handle watching any of it, I would love kind of a non-biased (biased but from a super rational viewpint) confirmation, lol. Apologies for not being able to conform for myself - I have my mental health to take care of!
She destroyed him. She was nearly flawless in how she handled him.
I wish she would have answered more questions though. And I was stunned she answered the Afghanistan question but talking about $ and never mentioned the people lost. Very trumpiam answer.
But that is nitpicking. She was terrific.
I was driving in the car listening to that part of the debate and basically yelling at her to mention the troops lost and not let Trump be the one to say something, but even he botched it. I really thought she missed a great opportunity there to bridge the gap with the families and at least recognize that terrible tragedy in what was overall the right decision to leave for good.
So again with we have a really good healthcare plan or several plans we’ve talked about! Really so since 2016 till now you’ve been working on a plan/plans for healthcare and you can’t name it? Maybe his under the impression that the plan is for the whole world?
He’s never had a plan for healthcare. He’s not working on a plan. The Affordable Care Act or Obamacare is terrible if you’ve ever looked at one of the exchanges. It’s not affordable for most. But the websites are set up and available.
As someone who has been on it for years that is false. Also...as someone who prepares about 700 individual tax returns each year I can tell you that the marketplace plans are perfect for low and middle income people. The subsidies they receive for premiums make their plans affordable. For those of us that don't qualify for subsidies I can tell you that the premiums suck but they wouldn't be any better without the marketplace. My insurance premium now is not much more than I was paying Anthem 20 years ago prior to the marketplace.
I’ll take your word then. When I checked for myself, the premiums seemed crazy high but my income was probably way too high to get subsidies then.
they are high...but they aren't any worse then before
What did you end up doing? It seems like there are still some plans outside of the marketplace that seem better if you don't have any pre-existing conditions, etc.
I have a few clients that stuck with their Anthem plans and their premiums are ridiculous.
It's better where I am now. But for the 10 years I lived in Colorado it was terrible. I'd pay $1000 and my employer would pay about $1200 a month for premiums. When I'd look into the market place I'd see comparable coverage for about $1200-1400, but my employer wouldn't contribute towards it it we switched. And I'm not sure if I'd even qualify for the market place since I had employer sponsored benefits anyway. If I could get market place prices through our employer, it wouldn't have been so bad. But that's not how it worked.
The rules get a bit odd and it does depend on the size of your employer. For small businesses I always recommend getting rid of the group plans and having employees just go to the marketplace. Just increase salaries to cover the premium and it works out fine.
I did that with our employees and they loved it. I was paying them more than the premium they were being charged and it was great for me because future increases were on them. Of course the increased salary resulted in more of an increase each year with raises but a 3-5% pay raise annually is better than a 10% premium increase. And, it made the employees watch their funds rather than just taking what I was providing which may have been more than they needed.
Larger employees (50 employees or greater) are a different animal.
Remember the Thomas Nine !! (10/02/2018) The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago 2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy 2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE) 2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston 2020: Oakland, Oakland:2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana 2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville 2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
So I can't stomach Trump ever, so couldn't watch the debate. Do you all truly think Harris mopped the floor with him, or is it bias talking? Of course I would find it hard to believe he wasn't clobbered, but since I honestly can't handle watching any of it, I would love kind of a non-biased (biased but from a super rational viewpint) confirmation, lol. Apologies for not being able to conform for myself - I have my mental health to take care of!
She destroyed him. She was nearly flawless in how she handled him.
I wish she would have answered more questions though. And I was stunned she answered the Afghanistan question but talking about $ and never mentioned the people lost. Very trumpiam answer.
But that is nitpicking. She was terrific.
I was driving in the car listening to that part of the debate and basically yelling at her to mention the troops lost and not let Trump be the one to say something, but even he botched it. I really thought she missed a great opportunity there to bridge the gap with the families and at least recognize that terrible tragedy in what was overall the right decision to leave for good.
Yeah I was worried with the first question about the "are you better off today than 4 years ago"---when she gave that canned answer. I was hoping that she'd mix in a little about how far we've come but that she understands people are still struggling and that she knows we have a lot of work left to do. But, as you said, Trump botched his retort as usual.
As bad as Biden was in June, Trump was about as bad, albeit in a different way, last night. A truly awful performance. He was outclassed.
I think his strategy was clearly to just be loud and mad. She threw him off from the beginning with the hand shake and then by mentioning people leaving during his rallies. We've all seen the videos. They do get bored and leave after listening to the same droning for an hour.
Then she hits him with being a laughing stock and he couldn't get that stupid look off of his face the rest of the night.
Remember the Thomas Nine !! (10/02/2018) The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago 2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy 2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE) 2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston 2020: Oakland, Oakland:2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana 2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville 2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
I think his strategy was clearly to just be loud and mad. She threw him off from the beginning with the hand shake and then by mentioning people leaving during his rallies. We've all seen the videos. They do get bored and leave after listening to the same droning for an hour.
Then she hits him with being a laughing stock and he couldn't get that stupid look off of his face the rest of the night.
I cannot imagine they planed for him to appear loud and mad--that does not play well with the group he is vulnerable with: women. They most likely wanted him to act like he did back in June where he let Biden shit all over himself.
But as you said, he cannot contain himself and gets thrown off by the slightest insult.
Anyone who cannot handle an insult about the crowd size at a political rally, obviously is not qualified to be the leader of the free world.
So I can't stomach Trump ever, so couldn't watch the debate. Do you all truly think Harris mopped the floor with him, or is it bias talking? Of course I would find it hard to believe he wasn't clobbered, but since I honestly can't handle watching any of it, I would love kind of a non-biased (biased but from a super rational viewpint) confirmation, lol. Apologies for not being able to conform for myself - I have my mental health to take care of!
She destroyed him. She was nearly flawless in how she handled him.
I wish she would have answered more questions though. And I was stunned she answered the Afghanistan question but talking about $ and never mentioned the people lost. Very trumpiam answer.
But that is nitpicking. She was terrific.
I was driving in the car listening to that part of the debate and basically yelling at her to mention the troops lost and not let Trump be the one to say something, but even he botched it. I really thought she missed a great opportunity there to bridge the gap with the families and at least recognize that terrible tragedy in what was overall the right decision to leave for good.
As bad as Biden was in June, Trump was about as bad, albeit in a different way, last night. A truly awful performance. He was outclassed.
2 debates, each one featured an old man who needs to drop out of the race and is too old and unfit for the job.
So I can't stomach Trump ever, so couldn't watch the debate. Do you all truly think Harris mopped the floor with him, or is it bias talking? Of course I would find it hard to believe he wasn't clobbered, but since I honestly can't handle watching any of it, I would love kind of a non-biased (biased but from a super rational viewpint) confirmation, lol. Apologies for not being able to conform for myself - I have my mental health to take care of!
She destroyed him. She was nearly flawless in how she handled him.
I wish she would have answered more questions though. And I was stunned she answered the Afghanistan question but talking about $ and never mentioned the people lost. Very trumpiam answer.
But that is nitpicking. She was terrific.
I was driving in the car listening to that part of the debate and basically yelling at her to mention the troops lost and not let Trump be the one to say something, but even he botched it. I really thought she missed a great opportunity there to bridge the gap with the families and at least recognize that terrible tragedy in what was overall the right decision to leave for good.
As bad as Biden was in June, Trump was about as bad, albeit in a different way, last night. A truly awful performance. He was outclassed.
2 debates, each one featured an old man who needs to drop out of the race and is too old and unfit for the job.
Agreed, but once Biden stepped down, age and diminished mental capacity stopped being a hang-up for people.
the fact he even brought that up shows his mental capacity.
I believe the whole thing emanated from a fucking random facebook post too. Basically encapsulates maga as a whole.
Their entire medical knowledge is based on random fakebook posts. It's pathetic.
Spectrum 10/27/09; New Orleans JazzFest 5/1/10; Made in America 9/2/12; Phila, PA 10/21/13; Phila, PA 10/22/13; Baltimore Arena 10/27/13; Phila, PA 4/28/16; Phila, PA 4/29/16; Fenway Park 8/7/16; Fenway Park 9/2/18; Asbury Park 9/18/21; Camden 9/14/22; Las Vegas 5/16/24; Las Vegas 5/18/24; Phila, PA 9/7/24; Phila, PA 9/9/24; Baltimore Arena 9/12/24
Tres Mtns - TLA 3/23/11; EV - Tower Theatre 6/25/11; Temple of the Dog - Tower Theatre 11/5/16
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
0
brianlux
Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,289
From
the moment Kamala Harris and Donald Trump stepped on the debate stage
last night, you knew it was going to be different from any presidential
debate in recent memory.
The
two candidates had never formally met. Harris took charge immediately,
walking over to Trump to shake his hand, giving him no option.
It turned out to be the first of many moments where Harris got under Trump’s skin.
I
don’t know about you, but I was at the front of my seat for the more
than 90-minute debate. In the end, you would be hard-pressed to argue
that it wasn’t Kamala Harris’s night.
Tip
of the Stetson to ABC News and moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis
for fact-checking (some of) Trump’s lies in real time. But (and maybe
not a small thing) Trump got five more minutes of air time than Harris.
On the other hand, it gave Trump more time to flail about.
I’ve
labeled these so-called debates “joint appearances” in the past, but
this one came closer to an actual debate than any before. And whatever
you want to call it, it was a doozy.
As
the candidates tried to convince the small group of still undecided
swing state voters, Kamala Harris made her case. Trump, on the other
hand, hardly answered any question put to him, no matter how succinctly.
Most of his responses — you can’t call them answers — were rambling and
incoherent, filled with lies and accusations.
It
was definitely the best debate a Democrat has had against Trump in the
last eight (seems like 80) years. It is difficult to believe Trump’s
performance last night persuaded any fence-sitters.
Harris was in command and kept her cool. She knew her stuff and was well prepared. Most importantly, she was presidential.
Trump
appeared angry, and never once, to my knowledge, even looked at his
opponent. He winced often, took the bait repeatedly and fell back on his
tried and true behavior: bullying, even the moderators.
It
was a busy night for fact checkers. The latest tally shows 33 lies by
Trump to one by Harris. According to CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale, “No
major presidential candidate before Donald Trump has ever lied with this
kind of frequency.”
There
was stiff competition for biggest whopper of the night. This one
certainly is a contender: “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.” I won’t even dignify
that with an explanation.
How
bad was it for Trump? It was so bad he made a personal appearance in
the “spin room” after the debate, a very unusual move for a presidential
candidate and certainly not a move made by a winner. He felt the need
to spin his own poor performance and blame the media.
But, please, don’t just take my word for it. If you did not see the debate, I encourage you to watch it here.
It’s well worth your time. I don’t personally care about ratings for
events like these, though I do hope many millions of Americans watched.
The better informed the electorate is, the better for all of us.
A
footnote: A famous person with a lot of influence approved of Harris’s
debate performance. Taylor Swift posted to her 283 million Instagram
followers minutes after the debate that she would be voting for Harris
and Walz in November. She signed the post “Taylor Swift, Childless Cat
Lady.” Not that it is any surprise or figures to make a big difference.
In
a race this tight, last night’s debate was billed as the
difference-maker. Polls over the next few days should tell us if that
moniker was accurate.
Comments
The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
HOW HARRIS ROPED A DOPE
She stayed human when Trump went feral.
SEPTEMBER 11, 2024
Libtardaplorable©. And proud of it.
Brilliantati©
Trump spoke 39 times for 42 minutes.
They always seemed to let him get the last word....which worked to his detriment because he is an aging lunatic.
The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
"MAGA AGA" LOL
Phila, PA 4/28/16; Phila, PA 4/29/16; Fenway Park 8/7/16; Fenway Park 9/2/18; Asbury Park 9/18/21; Camden 9/14/22;
Las Vegas 5/16/24; Las Vegas 5/18/24; Phila, PA 9/7/24; Phila, PA 9/9/24; Baltimore Arena 9/12/24
Tres Mtns - TLA 3/23/11; EV - Tower Theatre 6/25/11; Temple of the Dog - Tower Theatre 11/5/16
I did that with our employees and they loved it. I was paying them more than the premium they were being charged and it was great for me because future increases were on them. Of course the increased salary resulted in more of an increase each year with raises but a 3-5% pay raise annually is better than a 10% premium increase. And, it made the employees watch their funds rather than just taking what I was providing which may have been more than they needed.
Larger employees (50 employees or greater) are a different animal.
The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
As bad as Biden was in June, Trump was about as bad, albeit in a different way, last night. A truly awful performance. He was outclassed.
Then she hits him with being a laughing stock and he couldn't get that stupid look off of his face the rest of the night.
The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
But as you said, he cannot contain himself and gets thrown off by the slightest insult.
Anyone who cannot handle an insult about the crowd size at a political rally, obviously is not qualified to be the leader of the free world.
Weird, huh?
-EV 8/14/93
Can someone help me set up an IG account? I want to make this my life's work for the next 50-some odd days.
My wife won't let me actually put this on my car, she's afraid someone might take it seriously, or try to burn our house down.
Phila, PA 4/28/16; Phila, PA 4/29/16; Fenway Park 8/7/16; Fenway Park 9/2/18; Asbury Park 9/18/21; Camden 9/14/22;
Las Vegas 5/16/24; Las Vegas 5/18/24; Phila, PA 9/7/24; Phila, PA 9/9/24; Baltimore Arena 9/12/24
Tres Mtns - TLA 3/23/11; EV - Tower Theatre 6/25/11; Temple of the Dog - Tower Theatre 11/5/16
e$ectively its just your facebook profile.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
-Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
Harris Put Trump on his Heels
And kept him off balance
What a difference two months makes.
From the moment Kamala Harris and Donald Trump stepped on the debate stage last night, you knew it was going to be different from any presidential debate in recent memory.
The two candidates had never formally met. Harris took charge immediately, walking over to Trump to shake his hand, giving him no option.
It turned out to be the first of many moments where Harris got under Trump’s skin.
I don’t know about you, but I was at the front of my seat for the more than 90-minute debate. In the end, you would be hard-pressed to argue that it wasn’t Kamala Harris’s night.
Tip of the Stetson to ABC News and moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis for fact-checking (some of) Trump’s lies in real time. But (and maybe not a small thing) Trump got five more minutes of air time than Harris. On the other hand, it gave Trump more time to flail about.
I’ve labeled these so-called debates “joint appearances” in the past, but this one came closer to an actual debate than any before. And whatever you want to call it, it was a doozy.
As the candidates tried to convince the small group of still undecided swing state voters, Kamala Harris made her case. Trump, on the other hand, hardly answered any question put to him, no matter how succinctly. Most of his responses — you can’t call them answers — were rambling and incoherent, filled with lies and accusations.
It was definitely the best debate a Democrat has had against Trump in the last eight (seems like 80) years. It is difficult to believe Trump’s performance last night persuaded any fence-sitters.
Harris was in command and kept her cool. She knew her stuff and was well prepared. Most importantly, she was presidential.
Trump appeared angry, and never once, to my knowledge, even looked at his opponent. He winced often, took the bait repeatedly and fell back on his tried and true behavior: bullying, even the moderators.
It was a busy night for fact checkers. The latest tally shows 33 lies by Trump to one by Harris. According to CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale, “No major presidential candidate before Donald Trump has ever lied with this kind of frequency.”
There was stiff competition for biggest whopper of the night. This one certainly is a contender: “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.” I won’t even dignify that with an explanation.
How bad was it for Trump? It was so bad he made a personal appearance in the “spin room” after the debate, a very unusual move for a presidential candidate and certainly not a move made by a winner. He felt the need to spin his own poor performance and blame the media.
But, please, don’t just take my word for it. If you did not see the debate, I encourage you to watch it here. It’s well worth your time. I don’t personally care about ratings for events like these, though I do hope many millions of Americans watched. The better informed the electorate is, the better for all of us.
A footnote: A famous person with a lot of influence approved of Harris’s debate performance. Taylor Swift posted to her 283 million Instagram followers minutes after the debate that she would be voting for Harris and Walz in November. She signed the post “Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady.” Not that it is any surprise or figures to make a big difference.
In a race this tight, last night’s debate was billed as the difference-maker. Polls over the next few days should tell us if that moniker was accurate.
-Eddie Vedder, "Smile"