Allies of former President Trump are urging him to just accept a second debate with Vice President Harris after she turned in a robust efficiency Tuesday night time, successfully placing the ball in Trump’s courtroom for a second assembly.
Harris’s crew wasted no time calling for an additional debate, whereas Trump refused to commit.
Some Senate Republicans imagine Trump may use one other chew on the apple.
“I think it would be an opportunity,” mentioned Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), one in all his high surrogates. “If I was in Trump’s position, I would.”
Trump and the GOP have struggled to outline Harris since she ascended to the highest of the Democratic ticket, and plenty of Republicans assume the president missed a key probability Tuesday. As an alternative of specializing in coverage variations, they are saying, he took bait positioned by Harris and dedicated self-inflicted wounds by taking place pointless rabbit holes. That included a much-derided reference to an internet conspiracy principle that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, are consuming pets.
“I believe we missed a lot of opportunities last night,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) advised reporters, agreeing {that a} second debate might be helpful.
“It makes a lot more sense to, instead of talking about cats and dogs, talk about 1.5 million got-aways,” he mentioned. “That’s a lot more frightening to me, and it’s a real threat.”
Others, nevertheless, sounded a word of warning.
“I wouldn’t ever debate again in a liberal setting. I don’t think it should be at CNN, I don’t think it needs to be at ABC. He’s done two of those,” mentioned Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), calling for Fox Information or one other conservative outlet to deal with the subsequent assembly.
Fox Information has proposed three dates in October to each campaigns for a debate, which might seemingly be moderated by anchors Bret Baier and Martha McCallum.
“I don’t know. That’s up to him,” mentioned Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), a high supporter.
“That’s up to them to decide. Although, usually if you’re winning, you don’t want another debate, so it’s curious that the Harris people want one. … Despite all the media talk and the punditry going on, I think they’re very concerned about the trajectory of the race over the last 10 days, especially as voters learn more about her and figure out that she’s just like Biden or worse.”
Harris’s marketing campaign on Tuesday night time argued that the “American people got to see the choice they will face this fall at the ballot box” and may have a second alternative earlier than November.
Trump responded late Tuesday, saying Harris needs to debate once more “because she lost tonight.”
“I don’t know that I want to do another debate,” he added Wednesday morning on Fox Information.
Trump marketing campaign senior adviser Jason Miller, in the meantime, argued Wednesday that Trump has dedicated to a different debate, telling CNN that his crew agreed to an NBC-hosted debate on Sept. 25.
A number of surveys confirmed Harris was extensively considered because the winner of Tuesday’s debate, however questions stay about whether or not the efficiency will translate into voter motion behind her marketing campaign.
Democrats, lots of whom had been nervous going into the controversy, had been downright giddy within the aftermath — and need to see it occur once more.
“I’d certainly enjoy watching a repeat,” Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) mentioned with amusing and a smile. “It was a wonder to behold. She was so confident and down to earth and in command.”
“I think she can repeat [her performance],” he continued. “And I think Trump can repeat it.”
Democrats argue Harris nonetheless is not totally identified to some voters — particularly in comparison with Trump, who has had sky-high identify recognition for years — and may benefit from a second probability to attraction to voters.
A New York Instances ballot revealed Sunday discovered that 28 % of seemingly voters mentioned they felt they wanted to know extra about Harris, whereas solely 9 % mentioned they wanted to know extra about Trump.
Democrats are additionally cognizant that regardless of favorability scores which have ebbed and flowed all through the years, voters have had a rosier view of Trump’s presidency in hindsight. Get together strategists are hopeful that one other debate is an opportunity to knock that view down a peg.
“More people need to see him look like an unhinged weirdo. His retrospective favorability rating is still positive. More people think he was a good president than a bad president,” one Democratic operative mentioned. “She has to keep showing how bad he looks now.”
“She needs to prosecute the case that he was a bad president and that he’s only gotten worse since then,” they added.
Some concede that Harris’s efficiency Tuesday will set the expectations excessive for a future debate. However high Democrats say the profit is definitely worth the threat.
“I like it when my team wins 10-0, but I also like it when my team wins 8-2,” mentioned Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.).
“Maybe she can’t eclipse last night’s performance,” Murphy continued. “But maybe she gets better.”
Rep. Al Inexperienced (D-Texas) pointed to Harris’s busy schedule earlier than November however inspired one other spherical.
“If she believes she can have another one and still do all of these other things that she has to do around the whole country, then I would say, you know, do it. But I do want to make sure that she spends a lot of time in certain states that we know are key to ultimately having the electoral votes necessary to win,” he mentioned.
There was a debate concerning the debate earlier than Tuesday’s occasion truly passed off, which included Trump repeatedly criticizing ABC, elevating questions on whether or not he would take part in it, and the Harris marketing campaign pushing again on muting microphones whereas one other candidate is talking.
Trump mentioned Wednesday he’d do an NBC-hosted debate or a Fox-hosted debate, including he has to find out whether or not he needs to do one. He additionally railed towards ABC, attacking the community for the way it fact-checked his statements in comparison with Harris and suggesting it ought to have its broadcast license revoked, whereas different Republicans have attacked the moderators.
“It’s clear we’re going to have another debate on debates, and I can’t imagine Donald Trump will show up for it,” mentioned Democratic strategist David Thomas mentioned, quipping that Harris and Trump ought to debate on daily basis as a result of it’s one thing she “excels at.”
In the meantime, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), who ran towards Trump within the GOP major, warned towards Harris difficult Trump to a different debate, suggesting Trump may do higher and “nothing great can happen for her in a second debate.”
However different Republicans query if Trump can enhance in a second debate, pointing to how he was baited by Harris to steer off message.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), a famous Trump critic who was the GOP presidential nominee in 2012, referred to as the controversy a “classic President Trump performance” and praised Harris for trying “intelligent” and “capable” on the stage.
“I think Trump could probably use a second debate, although I am not sure — even after this experience — that he would have the discipline to stay on message, counter Harris’s attacks, or hold her accountable for nonanswers,” mentioned former Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.).
Cheyanne M. Daniels contributed.
