Trump ‘fine-tuning theatrics’ before Harris debate

American Presidential debates aren’t won connected policy.

I’ve covered six US statesmanlike elections and person ne'er seen a statement wherever 1 campaigner emerged arsenic the victor due to the fact that they made an outstanding argumentation proposal.

Sure, the ABC News moderators astatine Tuesday’s statement volition inquire Donald Trump and Kamala Harris earnest questions astir taxation cuts and overseas affairs. But what viewers ever absorption connected are the moments wherever 1 campaigner has a zinger of a line, oregon someway unnerves their opponent, oregon simply seems much successful control.

This is possibly wherefore an advisor to Donald Trump tells maine the erstwhile President hasn’t spent his prep clip brushing up connected policy. Instead, he’s been “fine-tuning the theatrics of his performance”. If there’s 1 happening that Donald Trump understands well, it’s tv audiences.

For Kamala Harris, this poses a problem. It’s hard to go a satellite people performer successful a mates of weeks, and she hasn’t had overmuch rehearsal clip for this show. Donald Trump has been connected a statesmanlike statement signifier 5 antithetic times. For Ms Harris, this is her debut.

Unlike her opponent, Ms Harris has spent the past week holed up successful a Pennsylvania edifice heavy successful argumentation books — but her squad has besides tried to hole her to triumph the optics conflict too.

The Harris squad has reportedly built a mock TV signifier - afloat fitted with a statement podium and due lighting. Top advisers are standing-in and playing the relation of Donald Trump (with 1 of them reportedly adjacent dressing successful Trump’s signature boxy suits and reddish ties).

All of this is successful a bid to get Ms Harris comfy with the theatre of it all. They’ve besides been reviewing hours of video of each those Trump debates, seeing which plays enactment good against him and which autumn flat.

If the vice-president was hoping for a burst of past infinitesimal bully quality to quell immoderate signifier fright, she didn’t get it. A New York Times canvass this week has rattled Democrats. The canvass showed a cervix and cervix contention betwixt the 2 candidates, but a sizeable stock of voters said they didn’t consciousness they knew capable astir Kamala Harris.

One Democratic strategist texted to accidental they are tense astir the statement due to the fact that they felt Harris was tentative successful a caller CNN interview. Ask immoderate of the Republicans who Trump demolished successful the 2016 superior debates and they volition surely archer you that “tentative” is not a winning strategy against him.

Since the American nationalist knows acold much astir Trump than astir Ms Harris, the stakes for her look higher connected Tuesday night.

One attack she whitethorn instrumentality successful trying to triumph this statement volition beryllium doing each she tin to guarantee that Donald Trump loses it. Her squad wants to rattle him, to get him to beryllium the astir “Trumpian” mentation of himself. They anticipation that if viewers spot him behave badly, arsenic helium did successful a 2020 statement against Joe Biden, it volition outgo him support.

I’m told Harris whitethorn usage trigger words similar “old” (old ideas, aged story) and “small” (small thinking, tiny beliefs) arsenic a mode to needle him connected the ground that Trump is conscious of being the older candidate, and references to size look to irritate him.

But goading him into rude interruptions volition beryllium hard successful this debate, due to the fact that the candidates' microphones volition beryllium muted erstwhile it’s not their crook to speak.

Until we spot what happens connected that stage, it’s hard to find what a triumph for either campaigner looks like. Debates are unpredictable things. Just inquire Joe Biden.