On Saturday, Harris accepted a proposal from CNN to have a debate on Oct. 23.
“I will gladly accept a second presidential debate on October 23. I hope realdonaldtrump will join me,” she wrote on social media.
Requested by reporters what message she would ship to Trump, Harris mentioned, “Join me on the debate stage. Let’s have another debate. There’s more to talk about. The voters deserve to hear conversations on substance, issues, and policies.”
Later that very same day, Trump declined the provide and insulted Harris at a rally in Wilmington, North Carolina.
“The problem with another debate is that it’s just too late, voting has already started,” Trump mentioned. “Now she wants to do a debate right before the election with CNN because she’s losing badly.” Trump then in contrast Harris to a fighter who requires a rematch after getting knocked out.
But it surely was Trump who bought knocked down in his earlier debate with the vice chairman.
Polling taken within the fast aftermath of the controversy confirmed an awesome majority of voters—63% to 37% in a CNN-SSRS ballot—saying Harris was the victor. Harris has additionally polled forward of Trump nationally in a number of polls taken for the reason that debate.
Along with polling, Trump’s debate efficiency has additionally come underneath fireplace. He was truth checked in actual time by debate moderator David Muir for his lie that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, are “eating the dogs, eating the cats.” Subsequent truth checks have identified that Trump’s repetition of the declare perpetuates dangerous racial stereotypes of Black folks.
In an interview with reporters in entrance of the Nationwide Affiliation of Black Journalists, Harris condemned Trump’s remarks and mentioned they had been disqualifying for somebody in search of the presidency.
The feedback had been additionally mocked by many on social media like TikTok.
Trump’s excuse for avoiding the controversy doesn’t maintain water. In 2020 when he was operating in opposition to President Joe Biden, the 2 candidates debated on Oct. 22, after early voting had already begun.
Trump’s resolution to curtail his debates is in step with his marketing campaign’s lack of enthusiasm. Trump has held far fewer rallies within the 2024 election cycle than he did in 2016, in line with an evaluation printed by Axios. Between June and September of 2016, Trump held 72 rallies. Within the present yr, he has solely held 24.
Harris and her marketing campaign have taken notice of Trump rally audiences yawning and leaving early out of boredom with the candidate’s rants.
That could be translating into issues for Trump on the bottom. Republican activists in swing states have instructed information shops just like the Related Press that they’ve seen few indicators of marketing campaign actions like door knocking and different in-person campaigning.
After all, which will even be Trump’s personal fault. “Literally the first thing Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump did after the former president’s takeover of the Republican National Committee in late April was fire everyone in its field operation, and scrap plans to open 40 field offices in the battleground states.”
